Two Jagged Puzzle Pieces
by TheBitterWriter
Summary: Determined to make his success last as long as possible, CM Punk buries himself in his character, at the cost of his relationships. Soon after he finds himself burnt out, and back to the mid-card. He prepared for his historic title reign to eventually end, but he didn't prepare for being wrapped around the finger of an egotistical eighteen-year-old.
1. Chapter 1

CHAPTER ONE

"Damn, what a building." The WWE Performance center was finally open in Orlando, Florida. It was alive and buzzing with rookies, trainers, and a few other main roster wrestlers eager to see the new training center.

Most of the rookies were in their wrestling gear, likely getting ready for a tryout, and there were far too many of them for Phil Brooks, better known as CM Punk, to even begin to process. It was all really surreal, he couldn't imagine having this kind of an opportunity when he first got started. A blur of emotions whirled through him. Pride to work here, jealousy of not having this in his times, but mainly happiness. Everything seemed to be going right these days. He was officially the longest reigning WWE Champion of the last ten years, which was more than he could have ever asked for.

"Isn't it?" Paul Levesque, better known as Triple H in the ring, walked over to Punk, shaking his hand. "Come on, let me give you the grand tour."

They walked down the wide halls that wove through the Performance Center, the walls adorned with posters of various WWE Superstars and Pay Per Views. Tall and built like a rock, Paul towered over a majority of the rookies here today. Even Punk was taller than many of them, and he was considered one of the smaller guys in the locker room. Paul's skin was very tanned and his dirty blonde hair shaved close to his head. A much more professional look than his old ponytail. They certainly didn't always see eye to eye, but over the past year they've learned to put aside their differences.

"Got a lot of tryouts scheduled today?" Punk asked.

"Oh yeah. I'm sure it'd mean the world to a lot of them if you could give them some advice this week. Plus, there's someone who'll be here the next few days I'm sure you'd love to meet. He's got a smart mouth on him just like you."

Punk laughed at the annoyance in his tone. He was sure not even Paul would be able to put up with another mouth as snarky as his.

They walked a little ways further down one of the many hallways, walking into the room where tryouts were being held. For a few hours they sat and watched the tryouts. Compared to the rest of the performance center, this room had a very serious atmosphere, and Punk was sure their presence was adding to it.

After the first round, Punk and Paul got some waters and snacks from the catering table before sitting on the edge of one of the rings. After so many years of wrestling all over the world, Punk had come to notice no two rings ever felt the same.

He traced lines on his bottle cap, wondering how he'd made it this far. Over the years, there were several, several times he'd been ready to walk out the door and leave for good. He would groan and complain about the company and the people there, but he could never bring himself to leave. He had to keep pushing himself and get to this level.

Punk told himself over the years that the journey was better as a struggle, compared to the guys he's seen getting their careers handed to them on a silver platter. They never made it far, the fans wouldn't let them until they earned it. If Punk had the choice, he'd do it all over again in a heartbeat.

"Something on your mind?" Paul asked, breaking Punk from his thoughts.

"I just can't believe I'm here," He said quietly.

Paul clapped a hand on his shoulder. "You earned it. All of it."

No one knew Punk's struggle quite like Paul. He had a front row seat to all of it, all of the bittersweet memories.

Punk avoided his eyes, unwilling to let himself succumb to the bitterness that tended to come out whenever he thought about the old days. He wouldn't be mad today. Today was a good day. This year was certainly one he'd never forget.

Paul released his hand and held up his water bottle. Punk smiled and raised his bottle as well, letting any bad emotions leave him for the moment.

"Cheers," He tapped his water to Paul's. Punk took a long swallow of water, and let out a deep sigh.

"So what's next for you, champ?" Paul asked.

Punk took a few seconds to think about it, reeling his thoughts back into the present. "Well, I haven't won the Rumble yet."

"I'm sure you will, someday."

"I guess you're in charge of that now, right?"

"Not completely yet, but I've got some weight to throw around."

"Well, I fully expect special treatment from you now." Punk had to admit, he'd noticed a change in how people were treating him now that he was a fully established main event superstar. He spent the past year soaking it in, because he knew it could all be over in an instant. Although, he was really starting to miss yelling at people to get his way.

"I'll do what I can. Are you going to be here the rest of the week?"

"Yeah. Might as well, I need to get some training in anyway." Though he wouldn't admit it, Punk also saw quite a few good looking rookies around he wouldn't mind training with. He wasn't looking for a relationship right now or even any one night stands, but flirting was always fun. Over time, he'd become known as bisexual rather notoriously. But for right now, he just wanted to focus on his career.

"You've been out of Chicago for a while right? Ever going to move back there?"

"No." Punk opened up his bag of chips silently for a moment, dreading the thought of going back and seeing AJ. "There's nothing left for me there anymore. AJ's got someone else down there now. She loves it there… I'm happy in Cali for the time being."

When AJ Lee and Punk broke up a few months ago, both burnt out from wrestling and arguing, she decided to stay in Chicago. She fell in love with the city, and got an apartment there a few blocks down. Punk couldn't take it and moved out to Los Angeles as soon as he could, not bothering to tell her.

Hunter gave him a sympathetic look. "You ever talk with her?"

"Not really. Only brief "Hello's" if we see each other at work."

AJ was the love of Punk's life. He'd wanted to marry her, maybe even have kids someday. But no more than after a year of dating, their relationship crumbled, and Punk would admit he was a jerk about it.

"You miss her," said Hunter quietly, like he was reading Punk's mind.

"Yeah," Punk admitted. "I wanted a family with her." He remembered how lost he got in being CM Punk, how he pushed her away. He'd had quite the habit of doing that to people.

"It's not too late, you know."

"It is. She moved on and I don't blame her. She's happy now, that's what matters." Punk knew they were on different paths of life, paths that didn't cross. Maybe they'd cross again someday, but for right now he wanted to just forget about it.

"Well, enough of that, how many people have you slept with since?" Paul shot him a smirk, mischief glinting in his eyes.

Punk laughed, knowing this question would come up eventually. "No one, I've just been focusing on my career. Though I will say, some of these rookies look pretty good." His eyes scanned down the legs of one of the new girls. "How's your love life?"

Paul started talking all about his wife and kids. He'd married Stephanie McMahon, who just so happened to be the heir to the WWE. They'd been the defining power couple of the company for as long as Punk could remember. He would be willing to bet they were raising the next mega stars in their children. He'd met them a few times and they've always been pleasant.

Punk wondered if he should just get back to his short-term flings, but he couldn't imagine doing that again after having such a serious relationship. He barely had time for a social life anyway now that he was the top dog. He decided to just stick with the harmless flirting.

After sitting through the rest of the tryouts, Paul and Punk said their goodbyes before heading to their respective hotels. Punk walked towards his room for the night, feeling relieved after his talk with Paul. He felt his phone buzz and looked down to read the text message. The next thing he knew he ran smack into someone walking in the hallway.

Punk quickly caught them by the waist, and gently pulled them back up, dropping his phone in the process. He went to apologize when he locked eyes with the guy. Literally glowing, neon green eyes stared back at him, temporarily paralyzing his ability to speak. He quickly regained his composure and cleared his throat.

"Hey, I'm so sorry about that. Are you alright?"

Punk subconsciously tightened his arm, bringing the person closer. He looked young, but he was wearing a WWE training shirt so Punk assumed he had to be at least twenty. The guy had dark blue hair with neon green streaks running through it. Not to mention, good lord, did he smell good.

 _Out of my league_ a voice in Punk's head rang, but he was going to soak this in.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Sorry."

"Don't be," said Punk lowly with a wink. He looked down at the full lips, just inches from his. Whoever this was, he looked like walking sex.

"Hey Hardy you coming?!" Punk heard someone yell. Hardy, he'd remember that.

He released his arm slowly from around the guy's waist. There was nothing like some flirting to make himself feel confident. Punk leaned down to pick up their phones, seeing the guy had dropped his as well. When he handed over his phone, Punk noticed how soft his hands were. The guy looked to be around the same height as Punk, if just half an inch shorter, but much skinnier. He had a rather tiny frame.

"Coming," he said, but barely taking his eyes off of Punk's. Punk really wanted see just how soft those lips were, but that was probably much too forward. He may have to rethink that whole no short-term flings thing. Punk wondered what room he was staying in, so he could "accidentally" run into him again. He would definitely be on the lookout at the tryouts tomorrow.

"Well come on!" The man yelled again. "We're already late."

The guy walked away and Punk watched the swing in his hips. He looked at the text he received, seeing it was his roommate for the night and fellow wrestler John Cena asking when he'd be back. He had been here for the tryouts as well, and to do some press for the company.

 _Boy do I owe you one_ thought Punk. He took one last glace at the rainbow-haired person before walking to his room.

The next morning Punk eagerly walked into the WWE Performance Center and traveled the halls to the tryout room. He briefly derailed his mission of finding the mystery man from last night to talk with his longtime friend Paul Heyman.

Paul grinned when he saw him. "Phil! There's my favorite client!"

They were working together on the show right now. He was definitely one of Punk's favorite people to work with.

"Tell me, how does being the longest reigning champion in a decade feel?"

Punk chuckled a bit, smiling at his genuine enthusiasm. Paul was one of the first people to believe in him, and to be here together now felt great.

"It's a little over-whelming. How's being the manager of the longest reigning champion in ten years feel?"

"It feels a little bit like being on top of the world. At last."

"It's been a long time coming," Punk said. He wondered how much longer his reign would last. As well as what on Earth he was going to do after. "I'm glad you're here with me."

"It's truly an honor, Phil. I'm very proud of you. You've really come a long way since I first met you all those years ago."

Paul's words hit him hard, and he gave him a warm smile. He'd never forget everything Paul did for him, he wouldn't have a career without the man. He was incredibly supportive, and his one real friend for the longest time. And now, he was the best manager Punk could ask for.

"I seriously can't thank you enough. You've given me everything."

"Getting guys like you in is what keeps me going. I'm always rooting for the underdogs." Paul gave him a crooked smile.

"How's the family?"

"Good, good. Kids are doing well in school. And of course, happy wife happy life. Anything new in your love life?"

"No, not really," said Punk, his thoughts going back to the night before.

"Really? That's a tad unlike you. I would have expected you to at least have one new prospect by now. Or at least be looking. Is everything alright?"

"I'm fine, and actually, now that you mention it, I did meet someone last night I'm kind of on the lookout for." Punk took a glace of the room, mainly scanning for blue hair. So far, no luck.

"Now that sounds like the CM Punk I know," said Paul.

Punk got a small smirk, taking another short scan of the room. Still nothing, he must be trying out later in the day.

Paul extended his arms for a hug. "I certainly won't stand in your way. Go find them" They quickly hugged before Punk walked towards the rings.

"I will." Punk took a deep breath before going to watch the rookies.

AN: I hope you guys liked this first chapter! Be sure to let me know what you thought in a review! Thanks for reading!


	2. Chapter 2

CHAPTER TWO

Paul gave Punk a welcoming nod before bringing two rookies into the ring. Punk checked over the crowd again, making sure he hadn't just missed a certain someone. So far, no luck. He sighed.

"Just get warmed up, the coaches should be here soon," said Paul.

"Hey Paul," Punk said, as Hunter walked out of the ring. He rubbed his chin stubble, seeing some more people coming in but not who he was looking for. Punk was almost anxious about seeing him again, like he was nervous. Especially here, surrounded by a bunch of his bosses, it was pretty far out of his comfort zone for flirting. He took a deep breath, feeling himself relax.

"What's up?"

Punk broke from his thoughts to see Paul standing next to him. He was in his usual three-piece suit and expensive dress shoes. Punk shook his hand.

"Is there a Hardy here somewhere?"

"Oh you've met Jeff, good."

 _Jeff_. "Briefly. Is that who you were telling me about?"

"Yeah, he's training right now," Paul said, rubbing his eyes like he was exhausted.

"He wearing you out?" Punk smirked.

"You have no idea. He's even worse than you. He never shuts up."

"That's hard to believe."

"You'll see. He's seventeen though so don't get any of your usual ideas."

Punk's eyes widened, thinking back to last night, how young the guy looked, and his stomach churned. That couldn't be him, he looked older than seventeen, there was no way, he must just have a brother or something.

"He may look older but trust me he still acts like a teenager. Attitude and all," Paul said. He turned down a hall leading to the training rings.

Punk bit his lip. He felt his nerves building tremendously. Even his stomach was in knots. "Right, duly noted."

As they walked into the training room, Paul introduced him to some of the wrestlers there, most of them the ones that had already passed their tryout, others well-known wrestlers from all over the world, or that were previously in the WWE, and Punk did his best to make small talk, but mainly scanned for blue hair. He normally had no problem conversing with strangers, but right now he only had one thing on his mind, and it was making him very uncomfortable.

When people started getting into their routines, he positioned himself by the benches, getting a good vantage point over the room. Punk looked at the wall clock across the room. They still had about twenty minutes until the day was fully started.

The rumble of voices was slowly dying down, and when Punk looked at Paul, he gestured towards the bathroom door opening. "There's Hardy."

The guy walked up and Punk forgot how to breathe. _Oh fuck_.

It was definitely his mystery guy, with purple hair now, and little strands of blue in it. He had a black tank top on that really highlighted his collar bones, and some dark blue wrestling tights that were practically a second skin. Granted, so were everyone else's tights. Punk felt his chest tighten up and told himself it was absolutely not ok to look at him like that, but he couldn't help but want his arms wrapped around him again.

He held a water bottle in hand, and walked over to Punk and Paul, seemingly unaware or he just didn't care anyone was waiting for him, and gave Punk a small smile. It was clear he recognized him too. He had his hair up in a very messy bun, strands sticking out every which way, just begging to be played with. Punk resisted the urge to take another glance down his body, biting his lip.

"This is Phil Brooks, or CM Punk" Paul said. "Punk, Jeff Hardy. He's going to help you train today, too."

He nodded for a moment. "Quite a name. I see why you go by CM Punk."

"Well, we aren't all born with names like Jeff Hardy."

Jeff smirked at him, making it clear he was just joking. Those neon green eyes staring back at Punk were so penetrating and he felt instantly flushed. He couldn't help but look down at Jeff's lips before tearing his eyes away. He crossed his arms, as Paul started relaying the routine to Jeff. Punk tried to focus his thoughts on just helping train him. He really couldn't believe they had hired someone under eighteen. Legally, Jeff couldn't even have his tryout match right now. Any anxiety Punk had instantly skyrocketed, knowing his age now.

Punk took a deep breath and put his hands inside the pocket of the black hoodie he was wearing, silently scolding himself for practically swooning. This was not his usual style at all. It was always the other person falling over him, not the other way around. Punk wasn't used to not feeling like he had control of the situation. They went to one of the wrestling rings, Paul leaving them alone for now while he went to go see the tryouts. Punk stuttered over his words a few times when Jeff would ask him questions, as they sat and talked. He just tried to explain it as thoroughly as possible, trying desperately to stay focused. Every time Jeff and Punk made eye contact, he felt brain short-circuit.

Eventually, they had to actually start wrestling. "So," said Jeff. "What's first?"

"You know how to lock up?"

"Yeah, the shoulder and elbow thing?"

"Yes, the shoulder and elbow thing, I'm assuming you haven't wrestled much."

"Is it so obvious?"

He smirked and leaned back on his hands, giving Punk a better view of his torso as he tried not to stare.

"No, just," Punk struggled to find an answer. "I'm surprised they let a total rookie come back here to these rings, they're usually reserved for veterans or guys that have been through their tryouts."

"I guess I'm special, then."

"It would seem."

"Are you my special treatment?"

"No," said Punk, clearing his throat. He was really wishing Jeff was eighteen right about now. His brain was already coming up with pickup lines to use, had this been a usual situation.

"Well, let's get started." Jeff stood up.

Punk took a deep breath before standing and locking up with Jeff. "Alright, I'll go easy on you."

"Easy on me?"

"Since you're new and all-"

"You think you can beat me easily?" Jeff interrupted.

"I know I can."

"Well what are you waiting for?"

They were sitting back down in the ring after their quick sparring bout, with Punk tapping his fingers in annoyance. He had most certainly been hustled. Jeff may not have wrestling experience, but he seemed to have plenty of fighting experience. Taking a deep breath, he looked back at Jeff. He smirked in amusement at what Punk imagined he did quite often. Punk gave a small smirk back, confirming to himself it was impossible to stay mad at a face like that.

He kept thinking back to last night, Jeff seemed like a whole different person when he was caught off guard. He seemed nervous and shy, almost naïve. Not anything like what he experienced today. Paul was right, he certainly could be a little arrogant.

"You did well. Could use some technical details here and there. You've got a solid base to build on."

Punk paused, waiting for a response, but Jeff's phone lit up, distracting him for the moment. Slightly annoyed, Punk went on talking about things they could improve on.

An awkward silence filled the ring. Jeff took a sip from his water bottle, closed out the screen on his phone, and set it back down. "Are you in a relationship?"

Punk felt like his heart stopped, and his face heated, surprised by the blunt question. _Am I in a relationship?_ He tried to hide his surprise, almost sure he must have heard the question wrong. "Um, what?"

"I have a girlfriend. I was just wondering how you handled it, with all the traveling and stuff."

Punk had heard the question right. He didn't know if he was relieved or disappointed Jeff wasn't actually flirting with him. He decided it was definitely for the best right now, and in a year's time, it'd be legal, and they'd probably be broken up anyway. Punk cleared his throat, trying to find something to say.

"No, but I used to be, and it can be done," Punk said, holding back a sigh. He met Jeff's gaze, doing his best not to stare. "Is she a wrestler too?"

"No, she wants to model. Why aren't you in one anymore?"

"Um, it just didn't work out, we grew apart. We're different people, you know?" He rubbed the back of his neck and sighed. Telling Jeff he was a complete jerk in the past probably wouldn't bode well for him in the future.

Jeff nodded, looking like Punk's words were sinking in as he looked at his phone.

He looked Punk in the eye, pausing for a moment before responding very casually. "Good to know."

Panic alarms went off in Punk's mind, hearing his inner voice telling him to lean in. Jeff just had this enticing air about him, and a very flirty attitude. He looked over to the side of the ring, seeing Paul approaching. For once, he was grateful to be cockblocked.

"Well, Jeff, Mr. McMahon seems satisfied with your progress, and wants to see some more. We can't technically give you a tryout until you're eighteen, so we'll keep training you over the next few months. After that, we'll see how it goes from there. How does that sound?" Paul said.

Relieved to have the tension broken, Punk got up and they exited the ring. Jeff offered up a small smile. "That sounds good. I guess."

"Great. We'll start working again in ten minutes. Get some water."

Paul nodded a goodbye to Punk before walking away to speak with some of the other guys, leaving him face to face with Jeff, who gave him a small smirk. He knew he needed to get going soon before the urge to play with Jeff's hair took over. Punk felt dirty just thinking about it. This was the most conflicted he's felt about anything.

"You did good today," Punk said, extending his hand

Jeff shook it, and Punk couldn't get over how nice his hands felt.

"You think?" Jeff countered.

"I know," Punk reassured him.

"So, I'll see you around, I guess?" Jeff's eyes softened, and Punk caught a glimpse of that guy he met in the hall again. The soft-spoken Hardy he was falling for.

Punk forced himself to look away from Jeff's gleaming eyes and put his hands in his hoodie pockets. Those orbs could convince anyone of absolutely anything. _Just a year, just wait a year_.

"You know, after I'm signed and everything. Assuming you'll still be here."

Punk met his gaze again, thrilled to have just a small glimmer of hope Jeff was on the same page with him. "Yeah, Hardy, I'll see you around."

*** _1 Year Later_ ***

"Dude, why don't you just go talk to him?" John Cena said into the phone. The sound of traffic hustled and bustled in the background.

"I can't." Punk was changing in the men's locker room for Raw that night.

"Why not? He's there isn't he?"

"Yes, at least he will be," Punk said, pulling on his "Best in the World" T-Shirt and plopping down on one of the benches. Tonight was Jeff Hardy's official main roster debut, and Punk was feeling a wide variety of emotions.

"Well, go talk to him. He's got to be eighteen now. You said he was hot, right?"

Jeff Hardy was one the sexiest people Punk had ever shared a room with, but he hadn't seen him in over a year, and he'd heard from Paul he'd only gotten more stuck-up and arrogant. Unfortunately, that did put a damper on his attraction. He was never into the high maintenance type, not for longer than a night.

"It doesn't matter, John. He's probably still with his girlfriend." Punk sighed, thinking about their last encounter. He didn't actually believe that, but right now he was trying to convince both John and himself this was a bad idea. A guy like Jeff Hardy never stayed single for very long anyway.

"You'll never know if you don't ask. You know, you've never seemed like the too scared type."

"I'm not scared. Just, realistic."

John chuckled. "Surrreeeee."

"I'm not!"

"Then just go have a conversation with the guy, you can still just be friends. And who knows, maybe he's single."

"Yeah, yeah, I will." Punk bit his lip, knowing he'd have to talk to Jeff. They were bound to pass each other at one point. He was debuting tonight, after all. Punk had been anticipating this for weeks since he heard Jeff was being called up. It was something he had to confront eventually.

"Just congratulate him on his debut. Everyone else will be."

"Yeah, there is going to be a big party tonight," Punk said. It was a tradition for everyone to get together for dinner at a club whenever someone debuted or won a title. God knows he hated parties, Punk didn't even show up to his own title celebration, but this one might be necessary.

"Yeah let's go, and bring our new friend Nikki!" He said enthusiastically.

Punk laughed. John had been talking Nikki Bella up the past few weeks. They went well together, Nikki fell apart over three-piece suits and John was never seen out without one. " _Our_ new friend?"

"You know you're my wingman."

"I think you've got her hooked plenty already."

"Phil, you've got to help me out on this one, this could seal the deal."

Punk sighed. He knew John would make him help, but if he had to go to the party tonight, Nikki Bella wasn't exactly the person he planned on spending time with. "Alright, alright. I'll help a little."

"Thank you. I'll be at the arena in half an hour. If he's there and you haven't spoken with him I'll kick you," John said.

"Yeah yeah, see you then." Punk hung up and pulled a gray hoodie on, the one from his past jujitsu days and yawned. Today had him beyond drained.

Punk went to look at himself in one of the full-length mirrors in the men's locker room. He smoothed out his brown hair and sighed. He had much heavier bags than usual, thanks to an incredibly stressful past few weeks.

Punk felt butterflies stirring just from thinking about seeing Jeff again. He couldn't believe he was letting himself get weak in the knees over some cocky eighteen-year old. If anything, this was an indication he just needed to revive his sex life. He was probably just horny is all. Punk had been with a few people over the past year. Nothing serious, just purely one night stands for something to do on a Saturday night. They were nice, but he had to admit it, he was missing relationships.

Punk put his hands in his hoodie pocket and left the room, nodding to Colby Lopez, known on television as Seth Rollins, on his way out. He knew he shouldn't hate Colby, the man had done nothing wrong, but he couldn't but feel bitter every now and then. Punk's record breaking reign had ended to The Rock, and now Seth Rollins was the new top guy.

He knew this would happen. As soon as he jobbed out to The Rock they'd send him back down to the midcard. Punk was really getting tired of it. Vince refused to retire so Paul still had very little say in the overall workings of the company. He didn't know when or how, but he knew if things didn't change soon, he was leaving.

While Colby's star kept getting brighter, creative continually had no plans for Punk. Any hope he had of staying in the main event was very quickly fading away. Now, it seemed like creative was just making it up as they went, tossing him in random rivalries to put someone else over.

Punk followed the smell of coffee to catering, feeling a dull throbbing in his head. "Damn it." He rubbed his temples and willed the pain away. Punk really needed to get some sleep. He'd built up a bad habit of getting two or less hours of sleep.

He thanked the catering staff for a steaming cup of coffee before sitting at one of the tables. Natalie Neidhart sat across from him with her own cup of joe. Her long blonde hair was pulled up into a half-bun, and she was in her pink and black ring gear. Punk found her cute, but never thought of her in a romantic sense. She was married anyway. Nattie was just always a good friend. "You look like a guy that needs a break."

"I'm just a little on the edge," Punk said, thankful for her presence. She was bringing down his nerves a little.

"Are you doing alright? You seem a little off today."

Punk resisted the urge to bite his lip, thinking about Jeff being there tonight.

"It's nothing. I just feel like I'm constantly digging myself back out of holes here. I don't know how much longer I can deal with this." He sighed, knowing Nattie knew exactly the situation he was in. "You know what I mean."

"Well, I never knew you were a quitter." She gave him a sassy smirk.

Punk rolled his eyes with a smirk. "I guess that's why I'm still here."

"Just stick it out, you never know what'll happen."

"Yeah, they're lucky they're paying well."

"Damn well." Nattie took a sip of coffee, and started scrolling through her phone. "You know Jeff Hardy is debuting tonight? I think I'm going to google stalk him."

Punk's eyebrows quirked, and he tried not to give off any signs that he knew. Nattie always had a fairly good bullshit detector, so he wanted the subject to change as quickly as possible. Punk needed to practice not caring for when he saw Jeff anyway. He figured Jeff had people in the palm of his hand with very little effort. If Punk stood half a chance of Jeff being interested, swooning over him wasn't the way to go. And it certainly wasn't his style.

"Oh, really, I didn't know." Punk tried to give off an uncaring attitude, but he was incredibly interested in what she was finding. He really didn't know much about Jeff, but judging from the fact he was brought up so young and with an ego problem to boot, he must have some kind of serious influence. Nattie stared intently at her phone screen, reading with obvious interest. It made it hard for Punk to keep up his act. "What's it say?"

"He lives in Los Angeles too."

"What?" She must have the wrong Jeff Hardy, there was no way they'd been living in the same city for a year without noticing. He wasn't exactly easy to miss. Though with looks like that, he wouldn't doubt Jeff came straight out of California.

"Just recently. He's originally from North Carolina. He's got connections with a few modeling agencies here and there."

"Vince still has that fitness model fetish, then?"

"Seems like it. I can't believe he's only eighteen. He looks older."

This information did little to quench his curiosity, in fact, it heightened it. Though, he was disappointed Jeff was plucked straight out of a modeling agency. Those kinds of people never lasted long here, and Punk did resent that they were handed a wrestling career when he worked his entire life to be here. He hoped Jeff wasn't as bad as he was made out to be, that he'd at least be able to stand him for a night. "Well, they never last long anyways. I doubt I'll be seeing much of him."

AN: Thank you guys for reading! I hope you liked it! Please leave a review!

x the typhlosion- Thanks for reviewing! Hope you liked the chapter!

Vengeance FoREVer- Thanks for reviewing! I'm glad you like it!


	3. Chapter 3

CHAPTER 3

As soon as Punk heard Jeff arrived, he avoided him at all costs. He couldn't face him yet, what would he even say? What did he even want to say? Punk had watched his debut from the back, and he was sure Jeff did great, but all Punk could focus on was how good he looked in wresting tights. And now it was even legal to look. He was incredibly thankful he hadn't gone to talk to Jeff, Punk doubted he would have been able to pick his tongue up off the ground with Jeff in that attire.

And now here he sat, in a booth by a window in some downtown nightclub, sitting by himself. It was drizzling rain outside. Streams of water coursed down the window and Punk watched them trail down. It was crazy loud in there with all the people that showed up, he hadn't even seen Jeff yet much less talked to him. All he'd done thus far was walk John over to Nikki and find a place to sit. Punk peeked into the crowd, his eyebrows quirking when he saw blue hair fading into purple flash in the crowd.

"Phil!"

John sat across from him in the booth, breaking Punk from his thoughts.

"I'm gonna talk to him."

"When?"

"Soon, I just saw him."

John took a swig of the drink he was holding, already clearly tipsy. "And you didn't say anything?"

"He was across the room."

"Just go do it. Stop doubting yourself." John reached over and clapped a hand on Punk's shoulder.

Punk knew he'd probably get turned down, but what the hell. He couldn't just let an opportunity like this slip. And he would never let it be known he was too afraid to talk to someone.

"Ok, I'm gonna do it," Punk said, feeling butterflies just at the thought, but also excitement. It would certainly be interesting at least, not like watching the rain fall for another two hours.

"Awesome, we're going right now," John said.

"Wait, we?"

"You got my back I got yours. And you're not exactly dressed up so you need all the help you can get."

Punk rolled his eyes as John took another sip of his drink.

"We're at a bar not a strip club."

"Clearly you don't pick people up at nightclubs often. At least lose the hoodie, show some arm for him."

Punk grumbled and took off his hoodie, wearing a black V-neck with a graphic design on underneath.

"Well look at you in a V-neck, you actually were thinking," said John.

"Shut up," said Punk. He looked into the crowd again and saw Jeff again. He was hard to miss, with such bright hair in contrast to the dark club. _He practically lights up the room,_ Punk thought.

They made their way out of the booth and across the club. Punk was continually trying to convince himself it was time for this.

Unsurprisingly, Jeff already had someone talking to him. Of course, it was Colby. Yet another reason Punk found to dislike him. He glared when Jeff laughed at something he said, and felt something burning in his chest. _Like you've got any chance with him,_ Punk thought. _Not after tonight_.

He tore his glare away from Colby to gaze at Jeff. Punk's eyes trailed up his long, tight jeans, then over his tan skin. It really contrasted with the green of his eyes. Jeff had rather large eyes, that were almost adorable in a way. They had a childlike innocence about them, probably because he was still so young. Punk had to admit he did find looking at Jeff in a sexual way still weird. He looked exactly the same as he did last year, except now it's legal to look at him like that, but it wasn't before.

"So, what's the plan?" asked John, walking further onto the dance floor. Punk followed him.

"Plan?" Punk tried to avoid touching any of the sweaty people on the dance floor at all costs.

"You have a plan right?"

"I was just gonna wing it."

"Dude, you really don't come to clubs often do you?"

"What's the big deal? It's no different from asking someone out anywhere else." Punk rubbed the back of his neck, looking at Jeff again.

"People come here to get laid, toss him a line or dance with him, do not just wing it." John said, crossing his arms.

"Pick-up lines never work, and I don't dance."

"Well not with that attitude."

"John, I think I know what I'm doing, I've got plenty of experience with this too."

"You've got experience in talking people up before you date them. This isn't a place that people form relationships in, and it is way too loud to have any kind of meaningful conversation. This is my element."

"I'll figure it out, I guarantee you corny lines will get me nowhere."

"Fine, fine, don't use my help."

Punk knew John had plenty of experience in the nightclub scene, but he knew that wasn't what he needed tonight. Jeff had probably gotten plenty of that kind of attention already tonight, and he was still here, so it obviously wasn't working. Though, maybe not for much longer if he didn't get rid of Colby.

"Just come with me and distract Colby. That's the help I need."

"Colby? Is he over there?"

Punk looked over and saw Jeff still talking with Colby, and he got a small glare. "Yeah, get rid of him."

"Alright alright, I'll get him to talk to me and Nikki."

"Good."

Punk looked around the club, and could see what John was talking about. Every guy in there was in a wife-beater and had a ridiculous tan. Punk had considered this, and that's why he wore a V-neck for one of the first times ever, and probably his last. But there was a whole other level of douche bag going on in here.

"Hey Phil!"

Punk's eyebrows quirked, certain he'd heard his name over the thudding music. Phil was a common name, but when he heard it again, Punk turned and saw it had come from Colby. Of course, Jeff was still with him.

"Too late to abort?" Punk said, as him and John walked over to Colby and Jeff.

"Way too late." John gave him a gentle nudge forward. "Just stick to the plan."

"There is no plan," Punk grumbled through his teeth.

When they made it over to them John immediately went into his routine small talk, while Punk looked over at Jeff, receiving a small smirk in return. There was something Punk found so intimidating with his smirks, but they were also sexy as hell. He was in all black, and Punk couldn't deny he looked flawless. Punk took a deep breath and rubbed the back of his neck, really hoping Jeff couldn't tell how nervous he was.

"Phil." Jeff greeted him with those penetrating eyes. "I didn't expect to see you here."

Punk did his best to appear unaffected, but found himself holding his breath when he could have sworn Jeff gazed over his body. He crossed his arms to hide the fact he was flexing just the slightest bit.

He saw Jeff's eyes glance down at his chest for half a second. Punk couldn't help but smirk, now he was sure Jeff was looking. He broke his stare to look over at Colby. Colby was certainly attractive in his own right, but not really Punk's style. He was just a bit taller than Punk, with dark brown hair just a few shades lighter than his eyes. Colby gave him a greeting nod.

"Yeah, I don't think I've ever seen you in a club."

He shot Punk a smile, one Punk had to resist punching.

"Yeah, this is a one-time thing. John dragged me here," Punk said, hoping John would hurry up and get him someplace else already.

Instead John offered a handshake to Jeff. "Congrats man, we had to come celebrate."

Punk shot him a look as he shook Jeff's hand, as he seemed to have forgotten the plan entirely. Looks like he really was going to have to wing it.

"Don't forget! Drinks are half off!" The bartender yelled.

"Want some drinks?" asked Jeff, as Colby and John immediately made their way to the bar.

"I don't actually drink." Punk said, feeling much more comfortable now that they were alone.

"Oh good. I'm too young to have anything anyway."

Punk smirked. "Wanna go sit down?"

"My feet are dying to," said Jeff, grabbing Punk's hand and leading him to the tables.

Punk looked at their hands as he was led and got a small smile. Well, this could be easier than he thought. They sat at one of the booths near the back of the club.

"I never thought you were the V-neck type," said Jeff, leaning in close so they could hear each other without yelling. Whatever cologne he was wearing drifted over to Punk, giving him a chill. He tried not to stare down at his lips at least not yet. Jeff was sitting very close, practically a few inches away from being on his lap, and he smelled incredible.

"Yeah. It's, different." Punk consciously tugged on his collar. Jeff wasn't even trying to hide the fact he was looking now.

"You do have the chest for it."

There were plenty of people in the club eyeing Jeff up, Punk couldn't believe Jeff was talking to him.

"You into parties like this?" Punk asked, trying to figure out if he'd be able to stand being around Jeff for more than a night. So far, so good.

"Not really. They're fun sometimes, but I prefer my alone time. I didn't expect you to live in the nightlife."

"I don't, but I can't let my trainee's debut go uncelebrated." Punk winked at Jeff.

It was definitely time to lay it on thick, Jeff was eating it up.

"You only sparred me once, and I whooped your ass."

"You did not," Punk said. "I went easy on you because you hustled me."

Punk waited for a response but Jeff's mouth twitched up into a smile, like he was trying to hold it in. Punk didn't understand what Paul was talking about. Jeff hadn't been egotistical at all. In fact, Punk found himself really enjoying Jeff's company.

Punk broke the silence. "You uh, you still with your girlfriend?"

Jeff was about to respond when John, Nikki, and Colby sat by them carrying shots of tequila. They had enough for just the two of them for plenty of poor decision making. Punk held in a large sigh and rested his head on his hands. John was officially the worst wingman in history.

Colby raised his shot in the air.

"A toast, to a long career," he said, clanking his glass with John's and Nikki's. They had clearly already had a few.

Punk was at least happy that Jeff had to scoot closer to him to make room for the others. They were thigh to thigh at this point, and if the others hadn't shown up Punk would have happily had an arm around him.

For a full hour, John told story after story of stupid things he'd done- skateboarding off the roof, mooning cops, drag racing his dad's car- and got drunker by the minute. Punk was beyond pissed with John at this point, refusing to converse with him.

"You know, it's getting pretty late."

Punk's eyebrows quirked at Jeff's voice, immediately distracting him from John.

"Yeah, it's getting really late," Punk said. "We should probably call it a night." It was only eleven p.m., but Punk saw a grand opportunity here. "You ready to leave, Jeff?"

"Extremely," Jeff looked over at Punk.

"Aw come on, stay for a little while longer," Colby said.

"I really need to get some sleep."

"Yeah, we should really go." Punk said, pulling his hoodie back on. It seemed like Jeff was definitely on the same page right now. He was positive he was gonna have fun tonight.

Punk stood up and Jeff followed. "Walk me to my car?"

"It would be my honor," Punk said.

"We are both leaving at the same time, it'd be awkward if you didn't."

Punk smirked, feeling very confident he'd stand Jeff for much longer than the night now.

They made their way to the exit and Punk held open the door for Jeff, taking the chance to gaze down his body. He could watch Jeff walk all day. They walked by side by side to Jeff's car. The light drizzle drummed against Punk's hood.

"So, friends with Colby?" Punk said, breaking the silence.

"Yeah. He's helped me out with training a lot."

"Ah, just friends, then?"

"Oh yeah. He's not really my type."

Punk raised a brow, wondering what exactly his type was.

Silence descended again, the pitter patter of the rain being the only sound. It was starting to pick up a bit heavier.

They saw Jeff's car, and Punk walked over with him.

"Well, here we are," Jeff said, brushing his hair back, pulling his hood up.

Punk gently grabbed Jeff's hand, tracing tiny circles with the pad of his thumb. Any time he had Jeff's hand he felt like sparks were shooting through his fingertips.

"Phil, I-"

Punk completely let go of any inhibitions. His face was just a few inches from Jeff's, the cologne practically intoxicating him. Punk started leaning in when Jeff put a finger on his lips.

"Aren't you gonna buy me a drink first?" Jeff murmured. His bottom lip sunk in just the slightest bit for him to bite it.

Punk couldn't imagine ever saying no to that face.

He chuckled, and kissed Jeff's finger tip, concentrating on his lips. "You're a little young for that."

"Yeah, well, I'm not a stickler for rules."

Jeff then sighed and took his hand away. "Look, I had fun tonight, but I'm here for work."

"You don't look like an all work and no play kind of guy."

Jeff got a small smirk.

"You can't say you're not interested, even just a little bit." Punk stepped just slightly closer.

"I guess you'll never know," said Jeff. "Even if I was, I wouldn't want something serious right now."

"Who says it has to be serious?"

"I say."

"How could I persuade you?" Punk smirked. Seeing Jeff's hair getting wet from under his hood made him want nothing more than to get him in a bedroom, serious relationship or not.

"You can't," Jeff said. The next thing Punk knew Jeff brushed a soft kiss against his jaw. Punk inhaled a sharp breath, surprised at the sudden contact.

"See you later," Jeff said with a smirk.

He left in his car and Punk touched his jaw. He got a small grin, and walked to his car. Punk took a deep breath. He couldn't deny it, Jeff had him in the palm of his hand.

AN: Thanks for reading! Hope you liked it! Please leave a review!

Vengeance FoREVer- Thanks for reviewing!


	4. Chapter 4

CHAPTER 4

The next morning, Punk heard someone knocking on his hotel door and his eyes slowly opened. He squinted to see the big digital clock on the bedside table, it was eight o' clock. Punk got up and looked through the peephole, seeing John standing outside. Of course, he was in a grey suit. He opened the door.

"John?"

"Good morning."

"Are you just getting back?" Punk rubbed his eyes. They were supposed to be rooming together last night after the party.

"I stayed with Nikki," He said, walking into the room.

Punk switched on the room light, feeling his vision come into focus. "Got laid, I assume?" Punk smirked and stretched his arms overhead. He sure hoped that was the case. Punk didn't mind the company, but he would prefer having an open room for… visitors. Mainly one visitor in particular. They had one more night here for the week, and he fully intended on breaking in the hotel bed and waking up tangled in blue hair.

"Damn right." He laid back on one of the beds with a content sigh. "So, what about you?"

"What do you mean?" Punk said, pulling on a white t-shit. He had slept shirtless in just his grey sweatpants.

"How's Jeff?"

Punk shrugged. "Fine, I assume. I walked him to his car."

"No, I mean in bed."

"I didn't sleep with him." Punk sat on the edge of the other bed.

John sat up. "What? But it went so well."

"It WAS going well until you decided to sit with us. But he didn't want to anyway."

"Oh, right. But you two were practically eye-fucking each other all night. How did you not score?"

"He just didn't want to do it, he wasn't there for that."

"Bullshit."

"I'm serious. He didn't even want a kiss. There was nothing I could have done to convince him otherwise."

"Jeff doesn't strike me as the whole 'wait until marriage' type. Also, side note, I know you said he was hot, but damn. I mean, I don't even like guys-"

"Keep your eyes on you own tail."

John smirked. "Possessive already. He's got you wrapped up good."

Punk sighed. "I am not 'wrapped up.' I'm just, I'm gonna go shower."

He really wanted to argue against John, but he just couldn't. Punk felt like his guard was coming down much too quickly around Jeff, it was worrying. He could not let himself fall for someone like that. Not again. This would be purely a fling. Nothing else. Punk let his thoughts unravel under the steady pressure of the shower. He was determined to get Jeff out of his mind, at least for right now.

When he finished, he got dressed and headed down to the lobby. He was wearing his usual style: Black hoodie, white T-shirt, and blue jeans. Punk had never really put much thought into his clothes, but now he couldn't stop thinking about what Jeff would like. Did Jeff really like the V-necks? Should he keep wearing them? Or was he just being sarcastic?

Punk walked into the hall for the meeting he was supposed to go to. Something about with a storyline. Punk had no idea what it was about, but he was just happy they had a plan for him. For once. He couldn't remember the last time he had a storyline important enough to warrant a meeting.

When Punk walked into the meeting room, his interest immediately peeked, seeing Colby in there as well, with some members of the creative team. He took a seat and looked over the room, seeing everyone engaged in small talk. Punk heard the door open again and his eyebrows quirked when Jeff sat next to him. He looked incredible in his gray hoodie and jeans. Everything he wore looked designer, and Punk was sure it was. He'd never been into the high maintenance style before, but Jeff wore clothes so well.

"What are you doing here?" Punk said, sounding more excited than he intended.

"Well, good morning to you too."

Jeff gave him a small smile and Punk immediately felt himself want to smile back. He was just so contagious. Punk couldn't help but glance down at his lips. The feeling of them on his jaw was not something he'd quickly forget, and he certainly didn't want to.

Punk thought for a second they were putting him and Jeff in some sort of romance angle, or at least he really hoped. Though considering Colby was here, that was highly unlikely.

After a few moments of silence Jeff responded. "Maybe they're putting us in a storyline together."

Punk's thought immediately went back to the idea of a romantic storyline, but he quickly hid his excitement.

"Well, this is a storyline meeting, where we typically discuss storylines."

"Shut up. You know what I mean."

Punk raised a brow, trying not to look over at Jeff. He knew once he did he'd never be able to look away again.

"You think they're putting us together, together?"

"Yes together together. What are you, in middle school?" Jeff leaned back in his seat, looking over at Punk.

"Funny coming from you. You look like should be in middle school." Punk swallowed nervously. Maybe they were actually putting him in a storyline with Jeff.

"Well that's especially funny coming from the guy who tried to kiss me last night." Jeff turned in his chair to face Punk.

Punk looked over at Jeff, immediately getting caught in his gaze. He could tell this was going to be a long game of cat and mouse with Jeff. Punk wondered how long it'd be until they wound up in a hotel room. Would it ever even get there? Maybe Jeff just loved to flirt.

The room began quickly filling up. Punk squeezed his eyes shut and rubbed them, still trying to fully wake up.

"Do you not want a storyline?"

Punk opened his eyes again, looking over to find Jeff staring at him, the green eyes immediately captivating Punk again. He started feeling his inhibitions slip away again the longer he looked into them.

"Oh, trust me, I want, and will be getting much more than that." Punk made sure to keep his voice low, only audible to them. He was not about to let Jeff think he had all the control here. Sure, Punk was sure Jeff had about every ounce of the control here, but he didn't need to know that.

"You sound pretty confident about that."

"I am." The voices started to dim and they faced back towards the creative members. Punk sat back in his chair, only paying attention to his thoughts. He probably came on a little strong there. Or very strong.

The head writer quickly spoke up and started running down the overall plans for the coming months. It was nothing to do with Punk yet, which was good because he wasn't paying any attention. His mind had one sole focus right now, and it was sitting right next to him. Punk at least kept himself from looking over at Jeff, publicly eye-fucking him wasn't exactly the most professional thing to do during a meeting. Though whatever cologne he was wearing was incredibly distracting.

Punk straightened out in his seat and took a deep breath before tuning in on the announcements. They were discussing Colby's upcoming title matches, just listing off the handful of opponents he'd be defeating. Punk did his best to contribute to the meeting, pushing any bitterness aside. For now. He even offered up some ideas for potential storylines for Colby. Punk was very careful not to look over at Jeff when he was speaking. One smirk would toss his focus straight out the window.

After a few more minutes, they wrapped up that discussion and immediately went on to the next topic. Punk's interest peeked when he heard Jeff's name.

"Now, we're going to start building up a team with Jeff Hardy and Seth Rollins," The lead creative writer said.

 _With Seth Rollins?_ Punk thought, holding back a scowl. _Why him? Why not me? Fuckin Colby._

"We're bringing him in as your trainee, and for right now he'll be shown as your friend on television, but you'll both be working in your own programs." Jeff nodded in response.

"Not to be impatient, but where exactly do I come into this?" Punk grumbled.

"You're starting a rivalry with Jeff and John Cena," The writer said.

Punk's eyebrows quirked. _Well, I guess that works too_.

"We will discuss all the details later when you get your scripts, for now continue on as usual."

Jeff got up to leave, and Punk quickly followed after him.

"Well, not exactly as expected," Punk said as they walked back towards the lobby. He really was excited for the rivalry. Stepping into the ring with John always elevated careers. Maybe he was finally getting back on top. For good.

"Much better than expected, really."

"Now I'll get to prove I can kick your butt."

Punk smirked when Jeff shot him a glare. This feud was definitely planned to be high caliber since it got its own meeting. And the extra time with Jeff was certainly appreciated.

"You certainly seem excited about it," Jeff said.

"I will eventually be fighting for the title, that's exciting."

"And here I thought the excitement was for me."

"I'd be lying if I said that wasn't part of it," Punk said as they walked into the hallway with the elevators.

He threaded his fingers into Jeff's when they stopped. Punk's other arm slipped under Jeff's hoodie, pulling him close. He felt Jeff's back curve into his grasp, reveling in the warmth that came from his body. Punk gently rubbed a thumb over Jeff's lower back through the thin material of his shirt.

"You've got a real habit of grabbing me in hotels," Jeff said. Punk could hear the shakiness in his voice. Jeff's hands found their way up to his chest, resting over the curve of his pectorals. Punk tried to keep his heartbeat as slow and steady as possible, knowing Jeff could feel it. The things he wanted to do right now…

"We've still got another day here, you know."

Punk pulled Jeff closer, his calm demeanor betrayed by the beating of his heart. He angled his face to curve into Jeff's, their lips an inch apart. Punk's brain was telling him to stop, but his heart silenced the protests. Desire very quickly overcame his sense.

Before he could lean in any further, they were interrupted by a shutter and flash. A person stood at the end of the hall, face hidden by his phone, which was pointed directly at them. _Fuck,_ Punk thought.

Jeff pushed off from Punk and the person immediately dashed away. They were now probably minutes away from the picture spreading like wildfire over Twitter. His face looked flustered and panicked, as he took a few steps back. Punk thought he almost looked scared.

"Jeff!" Punk quickly grabbed his elbow when he tried to walk away. "Hey, don't worry about it."

His face was still contorted in stress, and Punk resisted the urge to run his thumb over Jeff's puffy bottom lip. Now was definitely not the time for that. "It's ok-"

"No it's not! When people see that, I," Jeff shook his head and tried to walk to the elevators again.

"You'll get attention on your debut storyline," Punk cheekily smiled. He tried to grab Jeff's arm again but he quickly pulled away.

"You don't understand! You have no idea how bad this is!" Jeff yelled. He was visibly shaking now.

"Hey, it's ok," Punk put his hands on Jeff's arms. "Stuff like this blows over quickly. It'll be here and gone before you can even blink." Ok, it wouldn't be over that quickly, but Jeff didn't need to know that right now. "And there's nothing we can do about it now anyway."

Jeff sighed and leant back against the wall, looking defeated.

"So, see you tonight?" Punk gave him a small grin.

Jeff returned a glare then pressed the button for the elevator.

"Can I take that as a maybe?"

"You can take that as a fuck you," Jeff said, getting into the elevator.

Punk got a small smirk as the doors closed, deciding to wait for the next one. He sighed and looked down at his phone, just waiting for it to start buzzing like crazy.

A half hour later, Jeff sat in his hotel room with Colby. They had roomed together for the night. He sprawled out horizontally over one of the chairs, a bottle of Jack Daniel's in his lap. Jeff definitely wasn't old enough to drink, but Colby didn't mind sharing. Sure enough, the picture was all over the internet, and Jeff had to fill Colby in on what exactly happened there. He took a big gulp of the alcohol with a sigh.

"You do make a cute couple," Colby said.

"We are not a couple," Jeff took another swig, trying to relieve the stress he felt. He avoided even glancing at his phone, knowing he didn't want to see anything being said. "He's just easy to flirt with."

"Look, it's cool that you're so focused on work and all that, but he's clearly attracted to you, and don't even try to bullshit me that you're not attracted to him. You might as well go for it."

"No, I don't even want a relationship. I'm just here to wrestle."

"Just because Beth cheated doesn't mean-"

"Just drop it," said Jeff, his face contorting in pain as he took another swig. "It's not even about that."

"Don't get drunk off of that. You'll get me in big trouble," Colby said, trying to lighten the mood back up. He got a small chuckle out of Jeff and smiled. "He's not going to hurt you."

"I just need to focus on work right now, I don't need a bunch of extra bullshit to worry about. He probably just wants to sleep with me anyways."

"You don't know that, maybe he really likes you," Colby said. "And even if he did, there's nothing wrong with screwing him. You're an adult, do what you want."

"I'm not just gonna roll around with him." Jeff took another swig of the drink. "My career is more important to me than a fling."

Seth sighed. "You're really stubborn, you know?"

"I know."

"I'm not gonna push you, but I do think you should give it a chance. You never know what could happen."

"I do hate being pushed."

"Look, I've got autographs to sign soon. Humor me, and put this room to some use while I'm gone." Seth got up and grabbed the doorknob. "And there better still be half a bottle when I get back."

Jeff smirked as he left and then sighed. He looked over at his phone, seeing it continually lighting up with notifications, then took another large gulp of the alcohol.

AN: Thank you guys for reading! Hope you liked it! Please leave a review!


	5. Chapter 5

CHAPTER FIVE

Punk had really surprised himself this time. Here he was, standing in a gray, three-piece suit he literally just bought half an hour ago, battling with himself over actually knocking on Jeff Hardy's hotel room door. Punk assumed Jeff would not be up for some simple dinner at a lowbrow restaurant, and he didn't exactly bring any fancy clothes to wrestle with, so buying a brand new suit and a special reservation for the best restaurant in town seemed appropriate to ask for a date. At first he considered just asking Jeff to come over, but that would practically scream, "I just want sex," which usually resulted in no sex. And John would have never let him do that in just his usual black hoodie attire anyway. Punk took a deep breath and adjusted his tie nervously. It had been a very, very long time since he felt this nervous to ask someone out. Punk really couldn't believe he was actually going through with it.

He finally worked up the courage to knock at eight o'clock on the dot. Jeff answered in the same outfit as earlier, but he looked, different this time. More relaxed. Which, was exactly the opposite of what Punk was expecting considering the now infamous picture was now absolutely everywhere. It was mainly in his eyes. Normally Jeff's gaze could pierce through a diamond, but right now they looked so soft and sweet. They almost had a glazed over, not all there, look about them. Jeff's hair was pulled up into a messy bun, with strands poking out here and there, and it was already driving Punk crazy. Jeff had a very unique, almost feminine look about him, and Punk loved every bit of it. He wasn't sure how tonight was going to go, but his thoughts about it were anything but clean.

After Punk finished his moment of shameless gawking, he cleared his throat, finding Jeff's gaze fixated on him. So many emotions hit him right then- nerves, desire, he couldn't explain it, but it took his voice away for the moment. Jeff was far too sexy for his hormones to have any sort of willpower here.

"Um, hi," Jeff said, loosely holding onto his opposite arm's elbow.

"Jeff." A smirk started to curve at Punk's lips as he tried to feign confidence.

"Phil." Jeff leaned against the doorframe. "You look nice."

"Kinda feel like I'm asking you to the prom, really," Punk mumbled, looking down at his suit. He had decided to opt out of his high school's prom, but he imagined this is what it felt like to ask someone who's ridiculously out of your league. Punk had been through his fair share of asking out hot girls and guys, but Jeff was different. He was anything but typical. Punk had forgotten what this felt like, he hadn't felt it since… Well, since AJ. That was scary.

"I'm assuming you have some kind of plan to go with that suit?"  
"You could say that."

"I kind of need to get cleaned up." Jeff looked down at himself. "You can come in."

 _That was a million times easier than expected_. He followed Jeff in, his eyes immediately catching sight of an empty bottle of Jack Daniels. _I guess that explains why_. Punk looked around the room while Jeff dug through his suitcase, and noticed a whole other set of luggage there. Way more than necessary for one person. _Ah, must have a roommate. I'm sure the alcohol belongs to the other person, then. It's not like Jeff could even buy any._ "Who are you staying with?"

"Colby," Jeff said, and Punk resisted the urge to scowl.

 _Of course. Why wouldn't it be Colby?_ His mind immediately went to thoughts of Jeff and Colby having much more than just a friendship, but Punk pushed them aside. _I'm going to be the one staying with him tonight._ He couldn't help but keep looking at the bottle of Jack while Jeff got dressed. Jeff seemed so much more relaxed than usual, that couldn't be a coincidence, especially today. But he didn't seem drunk at all, maybe just buzzed? Punk sighed and ran his hands over his face. _Maybe we shouldn't do this tonight._ The bathroom door opened and Punk's eyebrows quirked, seeing Jeff in his black jacket, white shirt, and black pants that fit him so well. _We are definitely doing this tonight._ He gave Jeff a small smirk and offered up his arm. "Ready?" Jeff smiled and linked their arms as they walked into the hall.

"I do have an early flight tomorrow, just so you know," Jeff said.

"Don't worry, I'll have you back by morning," Punk said, winking at him.

Jeff rolled his eyes as they got in the elevator. "Subtle."

Punk laughed. "You're not exactly the subtle type either."

Jeff gave him a small smirk. "I guess that's true."

Punk drove them to the restaurant simply named Chance in John's black Lamborghini he'd convinced him to let him borrow for the night, which Jeff seemed very impressed with. He'd probably be suspicious when Punk didn't have it in the future, but Punk didn't really plan on having a future in that aspect anyway. When they got to Chance's parking lot, Jeff noticed it was empty. "Are you sure this is the place?"

"Positive," Punk said, getting out of the car. He helped Jeff out and offered his hand, and was surprised, and almost concerned, with how willingly he took it. That bottle was looking more and more like it was Jeff's. Jeff continued to look around as they walked to the ornate entrance. "It looks, closed."

"Well, surprise," said Punk, opening the door and guiding Jeff in. No one was there but the staff, who immediately sat the two.

"You rented it out?" Jeff said, sitting at their table.

"I figured you'd had enough public exposure for the day," Punk said, sitting across from him.

Jeff gave him a small, genuine smile with soft eyes. "Thank you."

Punk couldn't help but smile back, taking Jeff's hand and kissing his knuckles. Sure, he hadn't been entirely pleased with blowing a hole in his wallet for some sex, but if Jeff kept looking at him like that, he knew he'd do it again in a heartbeat. Punk had a feeling this would become much more than a night if he wasn't careful.

After they'd ordered, Punk took a sip of his Pepsi. "So, tell me about Jeff Hardy."

Jeff bit his lip, almost like he was nervous. "What do you want to know?"

Punk smirked, getting the sense Jeff had a bit of a naughty past. "What do you like to do for fun?"

"Not much, really. Especially lately."

"Ah, workaholic huh?"

"You could say that."

"That's certainly something we've got in common." Punk leaned back in his chair, fiddling with his thumbs. "It's uh, it's easy to become your character here, you know?"

"You don't seem too much like CM Punk."

"You should've seen me back in 2012. I was a douche."

"Well I never said you weren't a douche."

"Hey, I'm being nice tonight." Punk said with a smirk. "And don't even start, I have heard plenty of douchey things about you, pal."

Interest quickly flashed across Jeff's face but it was gone in an instant. "Maybe you shouldn't believe everything you hear."

"I don't, so I'd love to hear the other side."

The server brought their food, two orders of steak, and was gone as quickly as he came, leaving the two in an awkward silence.

"So," Punk said after a few bites. "Care to share your life story?"

Jeff kept his gaze down at his meal. "It seems like you've heard plenty already."

"Hardly, I've been in the business long enough to know the tabloids say absolutely nothing about the actual person."

Jeff sighed, picking at his food with his fork. "I was a model, I'm sure you've heard that much."

"I have, I don't think that's a bad thing," Punk said.

"Well you're the only one," Jeff said.

"Don't let the guys give you a hard time. You're here now, that's what matters."

Punk was extremely intrigued by Jeff's past, but he didn't want to push it if it made Jeff uncomfortable, and that's not what he wanted if he was expecting anything after this. "They gave me a really hard time when I first got here too. No one wanted to take me seriously because of how I looked. They get over it. It won't matter anymore when you're at the top."

"If I ever make it there after today."

"Stuff like this happens all the time. By next week everyone will forget about it."

"Well it's already ruined my first storyline."

"There'll be more. Besides, now you can be my love interest instead of Colby's." Punk's thoughts immediately became bitter about Colby, and not being involved with the title picture right now, but one look from Jeff shook them away.

"I'm not his love interest I'm his trainee."

"I trained you too."

"Once, and you were more focused on my ass than my training."

"I was focused on your eyes, thank you."

Jeff smirked and hid a blush with his hand as Punk took another sip of his Pepsi. He was surprised to be really enjoying himself yet again with Jeff. Although, Jeff did seem just a little off tonight. Maybe he was just feeling more comfortable around him.

When they finished and Punk insisted on covering the tab, he stood and offered his hand. Jeff immediately took it once again, and they went back to the hotel, then up to Punk's room. When Punk opened his door, he went to ask Jeff to come in. Before he could speak, Jeff was already walking into the room, and Punk couldn't help his small grin. Jeff sat on the couch and Punk took a seat beside him, turning to face him. "So, what's next Hardy?"

"That is the million-dollar question, isn't it?"

"That does deserve an answer."

"Well, I don't know. What do you want to do?"

"I think you know what I want to do." Punk tucked a loose strand of Jeff's hair behind his ear, then ran a hand under his chin. He could feel Jeff's pulse quicken, and gazed down his body. "What do you want to do?"

Punk immediately felt the atmosphere of the room change, and suddenly felt like it got a whole lot hotter in there. He clearly wanted Jeff in his bed, but now he was really feeling like he wanted more. It's not like Punk was a stranger to one night stands. It had always been solely focused on the physical, never any emotions coming into play. But now, Punk could already feel himself getting attached.

"I could use another drink."

Punk bit his lip. "Depends on what kind of drink you're talking about. And if it's the kind I think it is, another?" _I guess the bottle was his._

"I hardly had any, it's not a big deal," Jeff said.

"That whole bottle of Jack that was in your room?" Punk raised a brow. "Seems like a lot."

Jeff rolled his eyes. "I had three quarters of it, at most."

"Well if alcohol is what you're looking for, you're not going to find it with me."

Jeff laid his head on his forearms, resting on the top of the couch. "Not a fan?"

"Not at all, actually," Punk said. "I'm kinda straightedge, so."

Jeff chuckled. "Kinda?"

"Ok, completely."

"I've seen your tattoos, I guess I've just never really thought about it," Jeff said, pushing strands of hair back out of his face.

"Been checking out my abs?" Punk smirked, giving Jeff a small wink.

"You do wrestle in your underwear," said Jeff. "Kinda hard not to."

Punk chuckled and then sighed, resting his hands over his eyes and his head on the top of the couch. "I didn't know you drank."

Jeff shrugged and pulled his jacket off, tossing it on the coffee table. "Doesn't everyone here? Besides you."

"Yeah, but it's not exactly legal for you."

"It's fine as long as I don't get caught," Jeff said as Punk ran a thumb over the curve of his cheekbone. He felt a warm, fuzziness in his chest when Jeff leaned into his touch and smiled.

"Well, I guess that throws my idea out the window." Punk moved his hand to Jeff's and intertwined their fingers.

"I'm not drunk," Jeff said.

"It's still affecting you, you wouldn't even be considering sleeping with me if you were completely sober. And besides, if I get to fuck you, I want the full experience."

Jeff chuckled. "That's a lot to live up to."

"If your body looks anything like I imagine it does, I don't think that'll be too hard."

"I do like sleeping in my underwear, you know." Jeff gave him an enticing stare with a smirk.

"With that in mind, I did go out of my way to show you a good time, I think I'm at least owed a little spoon for the night," Punk said, not even bothering to keep his gaze from running down Jeff's legs.

"Well, I was gonna offer some lip action too but if that's all you want," Jeff said.

Punk took a deep breath. "Would sober Jeff offer me a kiss?"

"I have before."

"That was on the cheek, that's a big difference."

"What's the big deal?"

"Not only are you kind of tipsy, you are really, really young-"

Jeff leaned forward and pressed their lips together, bringing a hand up to Punk's cheek. Punk blinked a few times before closing his eyes and reciprocating. He ran a hand up Jeff's thigh and pulled him closer. Punk moaned when Jeff's tongue made its way into his mouth. He dipped his fingers under Jeff's shirt and slowly started leaning him back on the couch.

Jeff held up his leg to Punk with a small smirk. "Gonna help me out of these?"

Punk unzipped Jeff's boots before tossing them aside with his socks and slowly kissing up his left leg. He undid Jeff's pants with his teeth and then slid them off to the floor, gazing at his black briefs that hugged his figure so tightly. "You sure you don't sleep completely naked?"

Jeff smirked and pulled his shirt off over his head. "Pretty sure."

"Goddamn," Punk said, trailing his eyes over Jeff's toned abs. "I really wish I weren't a good person right now."

Jeff ran a foot up Punk's thigh. "Your turn."

"My turn?"

"Well you're not gonna sleep in a three-piece suit are ya?" Jeff winked with a smirk.

Punk felt a sensation shoot through his groin and forced himself to ignore it. He smirked back and pulled off his jacket, then started undoing his tie. "You gonna help?"

"Gladly." Jeff slowly unbuttoned Punk's shirt and ran his hands down his torso.

Punk bit his lip at the feeling and slid off his shirt. "Just snuggling. I don't want you to wake up hating me."

"Yeah yeah," said Jeff, undoing Punk's belt.

"But if you're still this horny in the morning, I'm putting you through the bed," Punk said, watching Jeff undo his pants and pull them down his legs.

Jeff gave him a quick peck and then pulled away to stand up. "Guess I better get some rest then."

Punk felt a little thrill in his chest watching Jeff walk to the bed. His butt was just as perfectly sculpted as the rest of him, and he made a promise to himself to get his hands on it tonight. Depending on how the morning went, this could very well be his only opportunity to do so, and it was an opportunity he would never miss. Punk could literally feel all of his better judgement slipping away. Everything about Jeff drove him crazy. If he were to have designed his own dream boyfriend in a lab, Jeff had everything he wanted and more. _Boyfriend?_ Punk thought. _No. No way. I am not dealing with that relationship shit again. I just want to fuck him. Yep. That's it._ He followed Jeff to the bed, and Jeff immediately curled up into his arms, burying his face in his chest. Punk softly smiled and kissed Jeff's forehead, nuzzling into his colorful hair. Now that was a pleasant smell he could get used to. He sighed softly. _Who am I kidding? I'm already hooked. I'm so fucked._ If he were being honest with himself, he was loving every minute of this, and it was terrifying.

AN: Thanks for reading! I hope you guys liked the chapter! Please leave a review!

JNHwwe- Thanks for reviewing! Glad you like it!


	6. Chapter 6

CHAPTER SIX

Jeff's eyes slowly fluttered open, staring at the figure in front of him until the rest of the room came into focus. He looked at the colorful, tattooed arms wrapped around him, one gently brushing his arm, the other dangling over his butt. Jeff felt his pulse peak and slowly slipped out of Punk's grasp. He sat up and pulled his knees to his chest, feeling his heart pounding. _What the fuck did I do?_ Jeff bit his lip, brushing a hand through his hair. _I'm so fucked. I'm. So. Fucked._

Jeff took a deep breath and let out a long sigh. He looked at the clock on the bedside table, seeing it was nearly 2 am. _God, what was I thinking? Ugh, I'm never drinking again_. He quietly slipped out of bed and pulled his clothes back on as best and fast as he could in the dark without making any noise. Jeff tiptoed to the door and slowly pulled it open, trying to minimize creaking as much as possible. He took one last glance at Punk, considering staying for just half a second before leaving the room. Jeff quickly scurried through the hotel halls back to his room, and when he entered, stopped dead in his tracks like a deer in headlights. Colby was awake and waiting on the couch.

Colby slowly smirked as the door shut behind Jeff. "Well, what are you doing up so late?"

"What are _you_ doing up so late?" Jeff countered rather defensively, crossing his arms as the door shut behind him.

"Waiting on you. I expect every single detail."

Jeff rolled his eyes. "Nothing happened."

"Oh really?" Colby said with a doubtful look, raising one brow. "Your shirt's inside out."

Jeff looked down at himself, holding in a blush as he saw his shirt was indeed inside out. He sighed and went to sit down next to Colby. "Where's the jack?"

"I don't have any more, you drank it all," Colby said. Jeff laid beside him, resting his head in Colby's lap. Colby ran his hands through the purple hair. "So, how was it?"

"We just made out," Jeff said, closing his eyes. "He knew I'd been drinking so we didn't have sex."

"Probably a good decision. So, the clothes?"

"Well, the kissing may have happened in our underwear." Jeff looked up at Colby when he moved his hand away. "Don't stop."

Colby chuckled and resumed running his fingers through the purple strands. "Sounds like you had a fun night."

"No."

"No?"

"Do you not see how fucked I am now?" Jeff said. "He's probably expecting sex at some point, at the very least. He might even want to actually be together."

"And the problem is?"

"I told you I don't want to deal with that shit!" Jeff said, running his hands over his face with a groan. "I just came here to wrestle and I'm already involved with a scandal."

"It'll be fine," Colby said, getting up to turn off the TV. "At least you didn't have your nudes leaked."

Jeff sighed. "Touché."

"If I can survive that, you can survive a fling."

"It's not a fling, it's not gonna happen again," Jeff said.

"If you say so," Colby said.

Jeff got up and pulled off his shirt, putting on his black silk robe. "I know so. It absolutely can't happen again."

"Why not?" Colby said. "You're young, you're hot, he's hot. Who cares what people think?"

"It's not just that."

"What is it then?" Colby shut off the main lights, leaving just the lamps on the nightstands to illuminate the room.

"I don't know!" Jeff sat on the edge of the bed and bit at his fingernails. "I've got enough addictions already, I don't need another one."

"I thought you said you were done with that." Colby sat on the opposite bed, resting his hands in his lap.

"I will be," Jeff grumbled, looking down at his bag, feeling the itch for the cigarettes inside. As well as plenty of other things inside he probably shouldn't be using. _See, that's another problem. He's all anti-drug and alcohol. We have nothing in common,_ Jeff reasoned to himself.

Colby yawned and laid back on his bed, turning off the bedside lamp. "Don't get caught."

"Yeah yeah." Jeff retreated to the shower, taking his clothes and robe off and sighing under the hot water. He could still feel Punk's arms, like a ghost was holding him. It really did feel nice being held, but it was also terrifying. _He's already too close to me. This is done._

The next week, Punk practically sulked into the Raw arena. He'd spent the last week shut inside his house, just on the off chance he'd happen to run into Jeff somewhere in Los Angeles. Punk didn't know what he really expected out of that night, a goodbye would have been nice. A 'Gee, thanks for blowing a giant paycheck on me' would have been nice. Just when he thought this day couldn't get worse, he finally looked up from his feet and saw his ex, AJ Lee. And she was walking right to him. Her long black hair bounced as she moved. Punk had forgotten how beautiful she was. AJ could have been a model if she wanted. She looked so tan and fit in her black tank top and gray jeans.

"April," Punk said, using her first name, feeling the need to avoid eye contact. "How are you?"

"Great! I can't believe it's already been so long since we've spoken. Time really flies doesn't it?"

 _Oh boy_ , Punk thought. He gave an awkward chuckle. "Yeah, it sure does."

"You want to go get some coffee? I'd love to catch up."

Her brown eyes pierced through Punk, reminding him why he always avoided these moments. The last thing he wanted to do was address the break up again. He didn't need any kind of resolution, or closure, he just wanted it to be done. But she seemed pretty insistent right now, and here he was with no excuses.

"Sure."

They walked a short ways to catering, grabbing their cups of coffee from the machines. They sat at a table together, and an awkward silence overtook them. Punk saw AJ all the time at work, but they never really spoke past 'Hi.' He really didn't have anything to say to her. Well he did, but he didn't want to. Punk honestly felt like he barely knew her now.

"So, how are things?" Punk said.

"Good, just working a lot, hanging out with my boyfriend."

"Right. Is he uh, is he good to you?"

"Oh yeah." AJ took a sip of her coffee. "Way better than my ex."

"Well, that's good. I hear he was a real jerk."

"I hear you've found someone too."

Punk's eyebrows quirked. So that's what this is about. He tapped his fingers nervously by his cup. "That's nothing, really."

"I don't really think kissing a teenager is nothing." She paused before continuing. "I thought you would tell me before you finally moved on, but I guess I should have known I'd find out over the internet. You've got a real habit of not telling me things."

Punk took a sip of his coffee, he really should have known where this conversation was headed. The controversy hadn't exactly calmed down in the past week. _I hope Jeff is ok_ , Punk thought, knowing how worried he was about this. _No, never mind, I don't even care. He obviously doesn't care about me, who cares about him_? Punk brought his attention back to AJ. Maybe it was time to clear the air once and for all, especially since he really did see her all the time. It'd be better if it wasn't awkward all the time.

"I'm sorry I moved without telling you. I had a lot going on." He knew it was a lame excuse, but he really didn't want to open up his life story right now. The last thing he needed was to bring up that repressed pain.

"I'm aware. I just thought we had a better relationship than that."

"We did," Punk said. "We still do. I just needed to get away, alright?"

AJ scoffed and gave Punk a sarcastic smile.

Punk sighed, knowing she'd accept nothing less than the complete truth. "It wasn't the same there anymore. You moved on in the blink of an eye and that's all I saw at that damn city anymore. I couldn't just pretend like nothing was happening." He took a deep breath before he got too angry. "Do you have any idea how bad it hurt? You took my home town away from me."

He looked up and saw genuine pity in her eyes, making his heart sink. Punk had never really thought about what she was feeling. How it must have felt to just never hear from him again. Punk knew it had to hurt her just as much as him. He took a big gulp of his coffee and then pushed out his chair to leave.

"I would have talked to you about it, you never gave me a chance."

"Yeah well believe it or not I really didn't feel like talking about your new boyfriend," Punk snapped.

AJ kept a firm look on her face but had soft eyes. Punk had always been a sucker for big, soft, round eyes. _Just like Jeff's_ , he thought. It reminded him of last week, how sweet he looked in the restaurant, and when they met in the hotel hallway. Those little glimpses he got to see of Jeff opening up. _Maybe he was just scared, maybe that's why he left._ He pushed his thoughts of Jeff aside for the moment and looked back at AJ.

Punk slouched back in his chair. "I needed to work things out by myself. I couldn't do that there."

"There's nothing wrong with accepting help."

Punk didn't bother arguing against that. She was just as stubborn as him, it'd get them nowhere.

"Well, since you obviously don't want to talk about things, it's probably best I go," AJ said.

Punk nodded, trying to push the painful memories back deep inside where they came from. "See you around."

"Enjoy your twink," AJ spat bitterly as she got up and walked away.

Punk rolled his eyes and scoffed. He resisted defending Jeff to her, he knew it'd just lead to a massive argument. But it really made him upset, hearing Jeff get called a twink. It's not like he was offended by the word, he'd used it plenty of times himself, but Jeff didn't deserve that. _He's so much more than that, if she would just grow up and stop being so jealous._ Punk sighed, pulling out his phone. He saw a text from Paul that simply said, "We need to talk. My office."

 _Fuck me_ , he thought, getting up and walking over to Paul's office. As soon as he walked in, Punk immediately sensed a tense atmosphere. "Hey buddy."

"I asked you to do one thing, Phil," Paul said, filling some paperwork.

Punk but his lip. "And what was that?"

"I told you not to get any ideas about Jeff. The one person I told you not to sleep with, and you do it anyway."

"It's not like that," said Punk, following Paul out of the room. "We haven't slept together, and we didn't even kiss in that picture he just caught us at the wrong time."

"In that picture?" Paul said.

"We haven't kissed at all," Punk lied. "I promise. Even so, he's 18, what's the big deal?"

"He's not 20 yet is the big deal," said Paul. "He's still a teenager and you're in your thirties. It's weird. The media is in a frenzy over this. We're working it into a storyline so they'll calm down, but that is the absolute last I want to hear of this."

Punk sighed. _A storyline? Jeff is gonna kill me._ "Whatever. Like I said, nothing happened."

"Keep it that way," Paul said, pointing the file at Punk and then walking away.

"Keep it that way," mocked Punk quietly. He turned around to walk to the locker room, but then saw Jeff leaving one of the offices. Against his better judgment, Punk decided to go tell Jeff exactly how he was feeling right now. AJ had yelled at him, Paul yelled at him, it was his time to yell back. "Jeff."

Jeff looked up from his feet, and any feelings of resentment Punk had disappeared when he saw how red and puffy those big, green eyes were. He realized Jeff probably got yelled at too, and from the looks of things, Punk got the better end of it. "Phil," Jeff said, looking back down at his feet. "I really don't have time for this."

"Are you okay?"

"Just peachy," Jeff spat sarcastically, rubbing one of his eyes and glaring up at him.

"Here," Punk said, motioning his head towards another hall. "Let's go talk somewhere more private."

Jeff looked around for a few moments, like he was looking for an excuse not to go, but then sighed. "Alright."

"It won't take long," Punk said, gently placing a hand on his back to guide him forward before he could argue about it.

They found an empty hallway and sat on a storage crate there. Punk did feel bad about it, but it was nice to see Jeff expressing some real, genuine emotion. It really humanized him. Jeff was just another person, not this perfect figure head he could tell the WWE was already trying to turn him into. Even Punk himself had already started to think of him like some big celebrity. But seeing him so vulnerable, even for just seconds at a time, he knew there was so much more to him.

Jeff sighed and laid his head on Punk's shoulder, making Punk's eyebrows quirk. Well, that was certainly not what he was expecting, but he wasn't gonna complain about it. It felt nice to just have someone so close after his talk with AJ. He'd never realized how alone he'd been feeling since they broke up. Punk didn't know if Jeff was just filling the void, or if he legitimately cared about him. _I guess that doesn't matter now,_ Punk thought. _Unless we hide it… Oh we can so hide it._ "So, what's wrong?" Punk asked, observing the new colors of his hair. It was mainly a light blue, but had pink, yellow, orange, and green streaks in there too. Definitely the most colorful he'd seen it.

"I'm sure you know."

"I guess so. You know, storylines don't last long here. I'm sure it'll get blown off next week." Punk looked down at his feet for a few moments, not really sure what to say until he saw a tear fall onto his shoe. "Hey," Punk said softly, guiding Jeff's head up by his chin, and wiping a stray tear away with his thumb. Jeff looked up at him and Punk felt his heart lurch at the biggest pair of puppy dog eyes he'd ever seen. Punk felt Jeff stiffen up and then he pulled away, crossing his arms over his torso. Well, he'd gotten a second of Jeff letting his walls down, that was progress.

"It's alright, seriously." Punk tucked a strand of Jeff's hair behind his ear, then ran his hand down his chin. How he would ever manage to have just a purely professional relationship with Jeff for storylines, Punk had no earthly idea. "Get yelled at?"

"Obviously."

"Do you want to talk about it?"

"Not really," Jeff said.

"Well, do you want to talk about what happened with us, then?" Punk asked, his curiosity getting the best of him.

Jeff sighed. "I'm sure you do."

"Why'd you leave?"

"Why do you care?" Jeff said, a look of resentment on his face as he stared at the ground. "And I had an early flight, not that it's any of your business."

"Why wouldn't I care?"

Jeff took a deep breath. "Don't even try to lie that you want more than sex."

"That's not all I want."

Jeff rolled his eyes with a scoff. "Bullshit."

"I'm serious."

"What? You want all night snuggle sessions too?" Jeff said sarcastically.

Punk had to admit, he'd still jump at the chance to sleep with Jeff. But he couldn't lie to himself that it was all he was interested in. Punk would love to have him as at least a friend, someone to talk to and receive blatantly honest answers back. And Jeff would probably be here a long time, it'd be best if they had a good working relationship. Not only that, they lived in the same city. If they really wanted to sneak around, it wouldn't be hard.

"We should at least be friends." Punk gently placed a hand on Jeff's thigh. He probably shouldn't be risking this at work, especially today, but Jeff had a habit of making him lose all self-control.

"At least? That's a loaded word."

"I mean it, really. I mean, we live in the same town. We're gonna be working together, might as well expand business into pleasure."

Jeff sighed. "Did you learn nothing from this past week? And I don't even want a relationship. Or sex. I just flirted with you because it was fun."

"Oh really?" Punk said, rubbing his thumb on the outside of Jeff's thigh. "You faked it pretty well last week."

Jeff peeled his hand off and looked like he was thinking.

"And just friends, that's perfectly fine too," Punk said.

Jeff just nodded silently and Punk did his best to change the topic. He talked about sports, figuring that's a topic everything has at least one thing in common with. Punk was just trying to cheer Jeff up a tad before the show, and it seemed like he made some progress. He got one whole half smile, which was a big deal to Punk. They may not have too much in common, per say, but Punk always found himself enjoying their conversations.

He made a promise to himself to get a full-on grin out of Jeff one day. If his eyes had that much of an effect on him, he couldn't imagine what his smile could do. He couldn't help but feel so intrigued by Jeff. Punk really wanted to know him as a person, there was something so mysterious about Jeff Hardy.

Punk looked at Jeff's pocket when his phone started going off, seeing a very beautiful blonde on the screen by the name of Beth. Jeff immediately pulled his phone out to reject the call, not an ounce of emotion on his face. Punk assumed she was Jeff's girlfriend he talked about a year ago, presumably an ex-girlfriend now, but he figured it was best not to ask. It really wasn't his business to, it's not like they were anything near a relationship, and a guy with Jeff's looks not having people pawing at him constantly was just unrealistic. Still, thinking about Jeff seeing someone else right now stung Punk a little inside.

Jeff slid off the crate and Punk immediately followed. He didn't know what came over him, but he wasn't letting Jeff walk away like this. When Jeff went to say goodbye, Punk pulled him close. He could have sworn he felt Jeff's heart skip a beat.

"I can't let you leave without a goodbye kiss, can I Hardy?"

When Jeff opened his mouth to respond, Punk covered his mouth with his own. Jeff immediately reciprocated. _God, his lips_ , Punk thought. If he had any angry feelings left, they were completely wiped out now. It really was impossible to stay mad at Jeff.

"We could get in a lot of trouble, you know?"

"You're not a stickler for rules, right?" Punk said in a low voice.

Jeff's face instantly took on that anxiety he saw when the now infamous picture was taken. "We can't. Look, it was fun, I'm sure sex with you is great, but I really can't fuck this opportunity up. Sleeping with you isn't worth losing my dream."

"We live in the same city we can-"

"No," Jeff said. "Someone is bound to find out."

"I wouldn't expect you to be such a boss' pet."

Punk pulled him even closer, melding their bodies together. Punk tried to convince himself to care that someone could walk by at any second, but he was much more worried about how hard he was already falling for Jeff.

"Phil, really, you're nice and all." Jeff paused, biting his lip. "I don't want a relationship. Or sex. Or anything like that. I'm here to work." He leant up and pecked Punk's lips before slipping out of his arms.

It took every bit of willpower Punk had to let him go. He knew this wouldn't be the end of whatever him and Jeff had at this point, not by a longshot.

"Consider that your goodbye kiss."

AN: Thanks for reading! I hope you enjoyed the chapter! Please leave a review and let me know what you thought!

Ray- Thanks for the review! Hope you liked this chapter too!


	7. Chapter 7

CHAPTER SEVEN

With only a few hours left before the show, Punk started reading his script. It'd probably be good to know what he was supposed to do tonight, and a distraction from Jeff would be great right now. But by the way his day was going, Punk could almost guarantee he'd have to work with Jeff tonight.

Punk had turned out to be right, he was working very closely with Jeff. He was actually romantically paired with Seth now, and Punk's job was to make it a triangle. After reading his lines and putting on his ring gear, Punk went to meet Jeff for their backstage segment. He was gonna argue with Seth Rollins a bit and then later team with John against him and Jeff. Punk held in a sigh as he walked over to Jeff. He looked absolutely stunning in his ring gear. His hair waved down over his body, and his black top with long green sleeves was practically a second skin. Punk was glad he had baggy black pants on as opposed to tights or this segment would have been impossible. Jeff really did look older all done up for the show, and that did nothing to help deter Punk's attraction right now. He just wished he could assure Jeff things would be fine, but he saw where Jeff was coming from. Jeff still had that rookie optimism for his career and he was taking every and any punishment seriously. Punk was getting to a point where he just couldn't care less. He had no idea when or if he'd be getting to hold the title now that they were rolling with this new storyline. Punk wouldn't be surprised if they took it away as a punishment. What did deter him from confronting Jeff about it right now was Colby's presence right next to him. He didn't know how much Colby knew about the situation, but it was probably best not to mention it.

Punk greeted them and only Colby responded, giving him a friendly smile. He despised how nice Colby was, it made it really hard to hate him. Jeff just avoided eye contact, staring down at the floor and practically pretending Punk wasn't there until the camera man gave them the cue to start.

The take started and Punk was walking down the hallway to the ring, rolling out his wrists before being stopped by Jeff and Colby. "Well, well, well," said Colby. "Look what we've got here. Another nobody who thinks he's owed a title shot."

Punk chuckled dryly. "I never got my rematch against Dwayne, I deserve a shot at the title."

"You deserve a ride to a retirement home. Tell you what, I'll do you a solid tonight, and finally put your career out of its misery."

"Oh I'm just getting started, kid. You keep running that mouth of yours and you'll wake up with a boot lodged in it. I've competed with The Rock at Wrestlemania, getting past you is just a warm-up for me."

"You're not just getting past me tonight, you go through him first," Colby said, motioning to Jeff. "Then we'll talk. That reminds me, who exactly is your partner tonight?"

Punk glanced over to Jeff, finally getting eye contact from him and being immediately distracted by it. He'd pay anything to know what Jeff was thinking right now. Punk cleared those thoughts from his mind and looked back at Colby.

"Haven't found one yet, but I don't even need one. I can handle both of you by myself."

"You'll be lucky to last two minutes."

"If you're so confident, how about you quit hiding behind your little boyfriend, and fight me like a man next week."

"Ooo next week? No can do. Jeff here keeps me pretty busy."

Punk felt instant resentment when Colby snaked his arm over Jeff's shoulders, and then looked over at Jeff. He didn't know what came over him, but he felt a very strong urge to go off script. "I don't know if you've seen sweetheart, but the small package is more than just a wrestling move with this guy."

"You shut your mouth!" Colby said, pointing in Punk's face but conveniently positioning Jeff in between them. Punk had to give it to him, Colby played a cowardly heel well.

"Or what?" Punk smirked when he saw Jeff trying as hard as he possibly could to hold a laugh in.

"You're the one who'll need my boot surgically removed from your face," Colby said, before stomping away. "Come on Jeff!"

Jeff lingered for a second before giving Punk a flirty smirk. "See you tonight." He followed Colby down the hall and Punk watched him walk away until he heard someone yell cut.

Punk sighed and walked over to Colby, figuring an apology was probably in order. That line made for some beautiful television, but he should get permission before saying something like that. He didn't want to get in a habit of blurring the line between character and reality again. It was fun for a few weeks, until absolutely everyone hated him. That wasn't a path he intended on walking again.

Punk immediately broke the silence when he got over there. "Hey, Colby, I'm-"

"Dude that was awesome!" Colby said. "You've gotta teach me your ways of improv sometime."

Well, that wasn't what Punk expected.

"Well, thanks, but. I guess I should have brought it up beforehand."

"No it's alright. I can take whatever you've got to throw at me." He gave Punk a fist bump and then walked away. "I'm gonna go get a water."

Punk turned to face Jeff and cleared his throat, feeling the awkward tension in the air. "So, for what it's worth, I'm sorry the picture wound up being a bigger deal than expected. I really didn't think they'd make a storyline out of it."

"Gee, thanks. That means so much," Jeff said dryly.

"It's not that bad, didn't you want a romantic storyline between us anyway?"

"I told you I was just flirting with you for the fun, you're just easy," Jeff said, picking at his fingernails. "You mean absolutely nothing to me. Right now you're just an obstacle in my career I want to get past as quickly as possible."

Punk felt like someone just kicked the wind right out of him. Well that was quite an attitude change from just a few hours ago. He crossed his arms. "You really expect me to believe that?'

Jeff sighed and rolled his eyes. "That's how it started, and now it's over."

 _Oh I see_ , Punk thought, realizing Jeff was just saying this to brush him off. _He wants to play games. I can play games_. "You can't stand here and tell me you don't feel anything for me. Trust me, you're not that great of an actor."

Jeff scoffed. "It's cute that you think someone like me would ever have feelings for someone like you."

"Well aren't you humble," Punk said. _So this was that ugly side of Jeff everyone else got to see_.

"Just leave me alone. One night of making out doesn't mean anything."

"It meant something to me."

"I never pictured CM Punk as the sensitive type."

Punk rolled his eyes. "Cut the crap. You can fool the others into thinking you're some ice-cold bitch, you can't fool me. I've already seen what you're really like."

"You think that's the real me?" Jeff got just an inch from Punk's face. "How do you know that wasn't the act?"

Punk quickly pulled him close, hearing Jeff inhale sharply. "That's how."

Jeff quickly pushed him off and snapped at him through gritted teeth. "Will you stop?! Someone could see us!"

"For someone who doesn't care about anything, you sure take a lot of interest in what people think about you."

Jeff glared at him. "I don't care what people think. I'm just not willing to lose my job over some below average asshat that can't take a hint. You don't know a damn thing about me, and I guarantee you wouldn't like me if you did."

Punk ran a finger under his jaw and then placed a kiss on his forehead. "I've got thick skin Hardy, you can't get rid of me that easily."

Jeff glared softly for a few moments before looking past Punk. "Colby's coming."

"Does he know?"

"Obviously," grumbled Jeff, crossing his arms and looking down at the ground. "Everyone does."

"I meant what did you tell him?"

Jeff sighed. "Everything."

Punk rolled his eyes. "Of course you did."

"So," Colby said. "Ideas for the match?"

Jeff just shrugged, and Punk noticed he moved closer to Colby. _What on Earth is Colby doing that makes Jeff trust him?_ He then held in a sigh. _Buying him booze, probably._

"Well," Colby said, breaking the awkward silence. "I'm feeling a lot of tension here, so I'm sorry if this is awkward, but we kind of have to discuss it."

"You're right," Punk said, trying to focus on thinking about what CM Punk would do. He looked over at Jeff. "I'll flirt with you, and Colby can take advantage from there."

"What are you gonna do?" Jeff asked.

"It'll come to me in the moment," Punk said, seeing John walking over to them. He really didn't need to know the end of the match details since he wasn't involved.

Jeff rolled his eyes. "You know maybe if you actually planned out your matches you'd still be champion."

"Jeff," Colby scolded, getting a scoff in response.

Punk was about to respond when John clapped a hand on his back. "Well, if it isn't my favorite couple!"

"As if," Jeff said, walking away with Colby following shortly after.

Punk took a deep breath. "Thanks John."

"What? I thought things were going well."

"Paul's pissed about it and Jeff's all freaked out," grumbled Punk, running his hands over his face.

"Oh, sorry," John said, rubbing the back of his neck. "So, that's over then?"

"No, I just." Punk sighed. "He's so hot. I mean, he's crazy, and materialistic, and mean, but he's so hot."

John smirked at him. "You really like him don't you?"

"I don't know." Punk looked after Jeff. He was right, Punk knew nothing about Jeff, but he wanted to. Punk didn't know what about Jeff was so entrancing but he knew he wasn't just going to give up. He'd never met someone he couldn't figure out like this, and it was driving him crazy. Punk was going to find out exactly who Jeff was, and hopefully get laid in the process.

"Well, I've got a hot date with Nikki tonight," John said.

"That's great John," Punk said, starting to walk toward guerrilla position.

"You know our conversations are very one sided," John said, following after him.

The crowd popped for John being the surprise partner, and their match started out with Colby and Punk in the ring, but Colby immediately tagged in Jeff. Punk couldn't help but scan down Jeff's body before locking up with him. He tried his best to keep his thoughts under control while they worked through their set, but he hadn't accounted for Jeff's grunting. Even the tiniest grunt or moan from Jeff sent his brain to the gutter. If this was what his ring grunts sounded like, Punk couldn't even imagine his bedroom moans. He had never felt so distracted during a match. Punk pulled Jeff into a headlock on the ground, mainly just to talk to him discreetly. "What's next?" Punk whispered.

"Get me to the corner and tag in John," Grunted Jeff through his teeth. "What is with you?"

"You're really hot when you grunt you know?" Whispered Punk right against his ear, just killing time at this point for Jeff to struggle.

"Yeah I know will you just fucking pay attention."

Punk rolled his eyes. That attitude Paul was talking about was becoming more and more prevalent. He started bringing Jeff up to his feet before Irish Whipping him into the corner. Punk tagged John in and tried to refocus while waiting on the apron. Eventually he got back in the ring with Colby and started working through his signature moves. When he was up on the ropes for his bulldog, holding Colby down, Punk saw Jeff looking from the apron. Punk smirked, figuring this was the best time for it, and motioned for Jeff to call him. "Hey baby call me when you want a real man!"

Punk could have sworn he got a smirk back but barely had time to register it before Colby powerbombed him on the mat. The match ended shortly after and Punk immediately made his way to the back. He grabbed a water and waited for Jeff to get back while John started talking to him. About what, he didn't know, he wasn't really paying attention. Punk would just respond with a grunt every now and then. It seemed to appease John. The second Punk caught a glance of multicolored hair he bolted over, abandoning John mid-conversation. "Jeff!"

Jeff raised a brow as Punk walked over. "Phil."

"See, the storyline's not so bad, right?" Punk said, mainly just searching for something to talk with Jeff about. He did not want to leave on bad terms tonight.

"I feel like that's not actually what you want to talk about, and I don't feel like talking about the other thing, soooo." Jeff held up a peace sign and started walking away before Punk grabbed his arm.

"Look," Punk said as Jeff turned back around to face him. "If you're scared about people finding out-"

"It's not that. Have you ever considered the fact that maybe I'm just not into you?"

"Yes, and we both know that's bullshit."

Jeff rolled his eyes and crossed his arms as Punk continued. "I can promise you, no one will know."

"No."

"What are you so afraid of?"

"I'm not afraid of anything," Jeff said. "I'm just not stupid."

"It's not stupid-"

"I'm not just gonna date a guy that's like fifteen years older than me, and expect things to work out."

"So you think things won't work out? Is that what's scaring you?"

"Oh my god," grumbled Jeff, walking away. "Find someone else to harass."

Punk sighed and watched him leave. He eventually made his way to the locker room, changed, and then drove to the hotel. When he got to his hotel room it took about two hours for John to get back.

Punk raised a brow. He wasn't expecting John to be back at all tonight after his date. "How was your date?"

John just pulled off his tie and tossed it on the dresser. _Oh great, the silent treatment_ , Punk thought. _That's another person mad at me to add to the list._

"John?"

"What?" He snapped. "It's not like you care."

"What are you talking about?"

"You just ignore me all the time now."

"John, I'm sorry about today. I've got a lot going on, and-" Punk ran his hands over his face. "Work is driving me crazy, and Jeff's driving me crazy, and now AJ's pissed at me again, and I-"

"I know, I know." John sat on the bed across from him with a sigh. "You've got your own shit going on. The date was fine."

"I wasn't expecting you back tonight."

"Me neither, but she's leaving for home in an hour."

"Ah," said Punk, fiddling with his tumbs.

"You're seeming awfully distracted tonight. More so than usual."

"You could say that," Punk said softly.

"I've never seen you so upset over someone like this. What'd Jeff do?"

"It's not that simple. It's not even him, it's just everything revolving around him."

"Well, you'll figure it out. You always do. Romance is your forte. You even figure out my relationship problems. I wouldn't even be talking to Nikki if it weren't for you."

Punk chuckled and then softly sighed. He wanted to believe him, but this was a whole new animal he was tackling. Seeing Jeff all the time was making it easier, but it was also very difficult to try to even talk to him without the whole world finding out.

After spending the next day doing nothing but thinking about Jeff at home, Punk came to a decision. He was CM Punk, and he was not about to let authority figures get between him and the best sex he'll ever have. Consequences be damned. He knew Jeff liked him too, so one quick google search and a ten minute drive later, he stood in front of Jeff's house, working up the courage to knock. Just a few minutes after he finally knocked, Jeff answered in ripped black jeans and a gray sweater, with his now teal hair falling down past his shoulders. "Phil!" Punk could have sworn he got a smile before Jeff quickly looked away. "Get inside before someone sees you." Punk walked inside and Jeff shut the door, taking a deep breath. "What are you doing here?" His tone sounded a little panicked, but also excited. It gave Punk a lot of relief.

"I live in the neighborhood, figured I might as well stop by."

Jeff gave him a soft smile, which just confirmed to Punk that what happened at Raw was most definitely an act. "You're crazy."

"You live in this giant place by yourself? Or are their parents I should worry about?" Punk asked, looking around the house. It was definitely more high society than he was used to.

"It's just me here." Jeff then crossed his arms and bit his lip. Punk stared down at Jeff's bottom lip, really wishing it was him biting it.

"So, are you done being mad at me?" Punk asked tentatively. Jeff was certainly hard to read at times, so he wasn't just going to assume Jeff was happy to see him.

"I did tell you to leave me alone," Jeff said, resting his hands on Punk's chest. "And you could get us both in a lot of trouble being here."

"What are they gonna do? Fire me? I'm probably gonna leave soon anyway."

"You're willing to lose your job over me? That's pretty romantic, Phil."

"I gotta have something to make up for my lack of fancy things."

"Well, it's nice to have a break from all of this every now and then," Jeff said, looking around at the house. "It's part of your appeal, really, that you're not like all of this."

"So, for our next date then, we can just order pizza and watch Empire Strikes Back?"

"What's that?"

"You know I forget how young you are sometimes," Punk said with a sigh, rubbing the back of his neck.

Jeff gave him a small smirk and then turned away, walking further into his house. "Do you know how to cook? I'm starving."

Punk smiled and followed him through a large entryway into a very open space with a designer kitchen straight out of some high society magazine and a large dining area. This wasn't far from what Punk expected Jeff would live like, clearly being a model paid well. Everything was very modern, with white couches and very dark woods. But there were colorful abstract paintings on a few walls. Clearly Jeff was a fan of art, or at least whoever decorated this place was.

What surprised Punk was how empty and clean the house was. It certainly didn't look lived in. "You have company often?"

"Not really. Colby comes by every now and then but other than that, no."

"Of course he does."

Jeff smirked as they walked into the kitchen. "What? Jealous?"

"You two seem, close, is all. And he could be considered an attractive guy."

"What is that supposed to mean?"

"You're telling me that you've shared hotel rooms, and he's been to your house, but nothing has happened between you two?"

"It is possible," Jeff said, sitting on a counter.

"But not likely." Punk sat beside him, absentmindedly playing with his hair.

"You have nothing to worry about."

"I notice you have not denied the question."

"I mean, it's been mostly platonic."

"Mostly?" Punk's eyebrows instantly quirked.

"We've, cuddled," Jeff said, rubbing the back of his neck awkwardly.

"How exactly do you define cuddling? Cause we've cuddled, and it wasn't platonic at all."

"We haven't had sex, if that's what you're asking."

"But you've kissed?"

"Only a few times," Jeff said.

"I thought you said there was nothing going on between you two," Punk said. He almost genuinely felt betrayed right now.

"Well there's not anymore. We haven't even spooned in months."

"Months? How long has this shit been going on?"

"Don't judge me," said Jeff, looking over at Punk. "It was when he started training me."

"You were seventeen?!"

"I said don't judge me!"

"How old was he?"

"Twenty-four," Jeff said softly.

"Oh my god," Punk said, resting his head on his hand.

"We didn't even have sex it wasn't a big deal."

"How far did you go?"

"I guess, as far as we have, maybe further."

"Further?"

"He was more grabby than you."

"You were fucking around with him when it wasn't even legal, and you're worried about us?"

"We were not fucking around."

"You know, I assumed you had a naughty past, but this-"

"Stoopppp," Jeff grumbled, burying his face in his hands.

"You are staying in my hotel room from now on."

"Because that's not suspicious."

"I'll hide you," Punk said, kissing Jeff's forehead. "Now, before I find out something even more incriminating, you don't have parties here?"

"Never."

"I'm surprised you're not a party boy."

"Well, I never said that. I just don't host them."

"But you're not a fan of nightclubs?"

"No, I can't drink at those."

"You're not supposed to drink at house parties yet either," Punk said with a smirk. Sure, he'd prefer if Jeff didn't drink, but it didn't seem like that big of a problem. It was certainly better than other things he could be doing.

"Technicalities. I'm gonna have some wine. Are you thirsty?"

"Yeah, water is fine for me," Punk said, getting a smile watching Jeff stand on the counter to reach the wine cabinet. "Let me guess, Colby got you all of that?"

"Maybe," said Jeff, hopping back down with a bottle of red wine. "So, I usually just order takeout."

"And let this beautiful kitchen go to waste?"

"Cooking isn't exactly one of my strong suits."

"Well have you ever tried?"

Jeff shrugged, pouring himself a glass of wine. "No."

"It's not that hard. What kind of food do you have?"

Jeff opened up his pantry. "Um, stuff."

Punk gazed over him into the pantry and grabbed a few things. "Alright, how about I teach you how to prepare a proper meal?" He set down the food on the counters and then watched Jeff walk over.

"Can't you just do it for me?" Jeff asked.

"It's easy, just dice these tomatoes for me."

"Dice?"

Punk decided to just make some spaghetti, and it became clear that Jeff had never cooked a thing in his life. But he was at least paying attention, and Punk made sure to take advantage of every time Jeff had to bend over to grab something.

When they finished, Punk grabbed two plates full and Jeff carried them to the dining table. Punk had to admit, it would take some time to get used to the "finer things" Jeff had. It definitely wasn't his style.

They ate silently for a few moments until Jeff spoke up. "This is great. You should visit more often."

"Well thank you. But I must say, desert will be even better."

"What's for desert?"

"Some Vitamin C. As in Vitamin CM Punk."

Jeff giggled as he drank a mouthful of wine.

Punk smiled, taking a bite of his spaghetti.

"How many times have you used that line?" Jeff asked, taking his last bite.

"First time tonight. How'd it do?"

"Zero out of ten."

"Aw come on, it wasn't that bad." Punk couldn't help a small smirk.

"Ok, to be fair, it's not the worst that's been used on me."

"Why thank you."

"You're gonna have to try a whole lot harder than that, though."

"Is that a challenge?" Punk said, raising a brow.

"It depends, how exactly do you intend to keep this secret?"

"It won't be hard, just keep the kissing in private. And it's not like they can fire us for it if they find out. I may not be a lawyer, but I'm pretty sure that's at least a little illegal."

"I need some time to think about it. And I really don't want to rush into anything like that. Especially if this gets serious. I just want to know what exactly I'm getting myself into here, is all."

If there was anyone Punk knew he couldn't bullshit about his intentions, it was Jeff. Trying to lie to him here would not only be just plain mean, it'd be incredibly stupid. But Punk didn't exactly know what he wanted out of this, or what Jeff wanted for that matter.

"What's really worrying you?" Punk asked, trying to reason out Jeff's feelings. He hated not understanding something, and Jeff was one confusing puzzle.

"It's just, I don't want to invest myself in something if it's not gonna last."

"I'm not gonna hurt you. That I can promise."

"I don't think you can make that promise. But I guess it wouldn't hurt to take advantage of living just down the street from each other." Jeff pulled his phone out of his pocket and gave it to Punk. "You give me your number, and I'll think about it." He took the empty plates back into the kitchen.

"You know, for having such a tiny little figure, you can really down some alcohol," Punk said, seeing Jeff pour himself another glass of wine.

"I guess I'm a sucker for it." Jeff gave him a small smirk and took a big gulp from his glass. "What are you gonna make tomorrow night? I'll stock the fridge accordingly."

Punk smirked, putting his number in Jeff's phone before giving it back. "Am I your personal chef now?"

"You cook for me, I give you kisses. I think we can make a pretty good system here."

"That's incredibly tempting," Punk teased, really hoping to himself Jeff wasn't just joking. Jeff did seem pretty at ease, especially with them living so close together. He imagined cooking for Jeff would definitely help his case. And if Jeff was being serious, he'd be over here cooking every night. That sounded like a beautiful plan.

AN: Thank you guys for reading! Be sure to leave a review and tell me what you thought! Hope you enjoyed it! :D


	8. Chapter 8

CHAPTER EIGHT

Punk helped wash the dishes and then settled down with Jeff on one of the living room couches. He couldn't help but notice Jeff shifting just an inch closer to him when he sat down. Punk hid his smirk and let his arm rest on top of the couch above Jeff. For once, Punk felt like he was the one with Jeff in the palm of his hand.

"So how did you learn to cook?" Jeff asked.

Punk bit his lip, thinking about how personal he actually wanted to get with his answer. The truth was, AJ taught him everything he knew about cooking. Before her, Punk could barely microwave a pizza for himself. But talking about AJ would just open up a whole other can of worms he did not want to deal with. Punk knew Jeff would be curious about why they broke up, and how Jeff might react to the truth worried him. He did kind of just promise Jeff not to hurt him. Talking about how much he hurt his ex didn't seem like it would be the brightest idea. On the other hand, Jeff would know if he was lying, and that wouldn't exactly be a great response either. Punk sighed internally. It would come out eventually, anyway. Might as well come from the right source.

"April, well, AJ, my ex, she was an amazing cook. Taught me everything I know."

"You guys have been broken up for a while right?" Jeff asked, turning to face Punk and laying his head on Punk's forearm.

"Yep, it's gotta be nearing two years now." Punk cleared his throat, feeling a twinge of sadness in his chest. "I wasn't in a good place back then, and by the time I realized how much of a jerk I was being, it was already too late. She moved on, and I moved here."

"Well, I'm sorry to hear that," Jeff said, lifting his head up when Punk shifted.

"No, it's fine." Saddened by the memory, Punk pulled his arm down and fiddled with his thumbs. "It's been a long time. But, I guess neither of us are completely over it. You never really get over your first big love, it's weird."

"I don't think it's weird." Jeff moved closer, very gently taking his hand. "So, she probably hates me right?"

He was speaking very softly, which was doing an amazing job of relaxing Punk. He wasn't sure he'd ever heard Jeff talk without some sort of venom or sarcasm in his voice. It was, nice.

Punk chuckled. "A bit, she'll get over it soon. I mean it's been a year and a half, she shouldn't be jealous. She's already moved on anyway. To be honest, I miss Chicago the most, but Los Angeles sure did just got a lot better. I think I'll be here for a while."

Jeff softly smiled and Punk thought he saw the slightest tint of red on his cheeks. "You haven't dated anyone this whole time?"

"Not really, nothing like a real relationship. Just simple one night stands."

"You must really miss her."

Punk couldn't deny he missed her sometimes, but what he really missed was just having a relationship. Having someone to hold all night and wake up to. Someone to spoil. He absentmindedly started tracing circles with his thumb over Jeff's hand. "I guess," Punk said. "But trust me, it's over. I can't dwell on the past anymore."

Punk's age was on his mind a lot lately, not only because of Jeff being so much younger than him, but because most people his age were already married. And here he was trying to sleep with someone who just turned eighteen. He was really starting to feel the pressure of needing to settle down. He knew he couldn't just walk away from Jeff, it was practically an addiction at this point. But Punk knew Jeff wasn't looking for a serious relationship. Or a relationship at all, really. Would walking away before either of them got too hurt be the best decision? Probably. But Punk couldn't even pretend to have that kind of willpower.

"It's getting pretty late, isn't it?"

"You gonna stay over?" Jeff asked with a very innocent tone considering what he was implying.

Punk gazed into Jeff's eyes while fighting with himself over staying. It'd make for an amazing night, but Jeff had already downed a few glasses of alcohol. _I'm in enough trouble already, I don't need to even touch that_.

"I probably shouldn't, and I'm sure you're pretty busy." Punk stood up from the couch. "Well, thanks for having me over for a surprise dinner."

Jeff stood up with him. "Thanks for cooking."

They were close enough that Punk was worried Jeff would be able to hear how hard his heart was beating. The sexual tension between them could be cut with a knife. Punk could tell knowing he only lived ten minutes away from Jeff would be the only thing on his mind for a while.

Punk tucked his hands into his hoodie pockets, resisting the urge to pull Jeff even closer. He looked down at his lips, debating whether or not to kiss him goodbye.

"Somethin wrong?" Desire shown clearly through Jeff's eyes as he grabbed Punk's hands. Punk immediately intertwined their fingers.

"Well, for one thing, you're tipsy. Again. And also, I'm thirty-two."

A small smirk curved at the corner of Jeff's mouth as he bit his bottom lip. Punk took a deep breath, using all of his self-control to not find Jeff's bedroom right now.

"I guess I've got a thing for older guys," Jeff murmured.

"You always get like this after drinking?"

"Only around you."

"Well aren't I lucky." Punk looked down at his shoes.

"So, are you gonna kiss me, or?"

"I don't know, I don't even know what I'm doing with my life right now honestly."

Punk took a step back, running a hand through his hair. He knew he wouldn't be able to resist wrapping his arms around Jeff's waist for very much longer.

"If it means anything, I do like you," Jeff said.

Punk smirked a little. "I know. I like you too. Tell you what, you come over to my house tomorrow, no alcohol prior, and I'll give you much more than a kiss. That work for you?"

Jeff let out a dramatic sigh and moved closer. "I guess." Punk grabbed his hand and placed a gentle kiss on his knuckles. He went to walk away but Jeff kept a hold of his hand. He looked back and Jeff gave him a small smirk with a wink. "You're not gonna leave without a goodnight kiss are you?"

Punk returned his smirk and gently pulled Jeff closer. One kiss couldn't hurt, could it? He brought their lips together and pulled Jeff into his arms. Normally when he kissed Jeff, it was hot and heavy and filled with sexual desire. But this one felt different. It was soft, and sweet. And somehow this little, innocent kiss became the most intimate thing he'd done with Jeff. Punk pecked Jeff's lips one last time before pulling away, unable to hold in his smile. "I'll see you tomorrow hot stuff."

"Yeah, bye Phil," Jeff said, giving Punk a small smile while he left.

The next day, Punk practically ran amuck throughout his house trying to get it ready. He washed all the dishes, picked up his laundry, and even tried to sort through all of his luggage lying around. Punk was slightly concerned Jeff would notice he did not, in fact, own a Lamborghini, and even considered renting one just for the night, but hopefully dinner would be enough to distract him from that. And Jeff said he liked that Punk wasn't all uppity anyway. Punk jumped when he heard the doorbell ring and quickly picked up a few last things, before taking a deep breath. He opened the door, and immediately smiled when he saw Jeff there with freshly died dark brown and purple hair.

"Hey there," Punk flashed him a smug grin before taking his hand and leading him into the home. Punk noticed how tense he was at first, but held in a smile when he quickly loosened up. He did text Jeff to dress casually for this, and granted a Ferrari tracksuit probably was casual for him, but he'd definitely have to teach him what casual actually was. Punk could just imagine how Jeff would look in one of his t-shirts. And if he was lucky, only his t-shirt.

"It's very beautiful," Jeff said with a small, looking at all of the decorations that lined the halls. Punk felt an instant wave of relief after his comment. Maybe he really didn't need a mansion full of overpriced bullshit to win him over. Punk offered Jeff up his arm. "Care for a tour?"

Jeff smirked and linked their arms, following Punk out of the living room. Punk led Jeff through each room, conveniently ending with the master bedroom upstairs. It had a decently sized dresser, but a huge bed. The other side of his room had a very large television with several gaming consoles next to it. There was a balcony attached with a frosted glass door to the outside.

"Not a bad bedroom," Jeff said, running his hands over the bedsheets. Punk's eyebrows immediately quirked, praying Jeff was trying to send him a subtle hint. _Well, wouldn't hurt to try._ He walked behind Jeff, wrapping his arms around his hips. "Not bad?"

Jeff leant back against Punk and clasped their hands together. "Well, it really depends on how good the bed is."

Punk smirked and brought his lips to Jeff's ear, kissing just behind it. Oh yeah, that was definitely a hint. "I will be happy to offer a demonstration of it."

Jeff chuckled and pulled away to sit on the edge of the bed. "Well, show me what you've got."

Punk immediately laid him back and pulled his legs apart to stand between them. "What are you testing here? Me or the bed?"

"Both," Jeff wrapped his arm over Punk's shoulders and pulled him in for a kiss. Even with his senses still about him, Punk couldn't deny the passion he felt anytime their lips made contact. It was something he hadn't felt in a long time, and he could already tell he was getting addicted to it. Punk ran his hands up Jeff's thighs, pressing their torsos together. As soon as he started sliding his hands under Jeff's shirt, Punk heard the doorbell sound. He groaned and buried his face in Jeff's neck. "I hate people."

Jeff let out a small chuckle as Punk pulled away from him. "I'll be right back," Punk said, as Jeff sat up. "Keep that beautiful body waiting for me."

Punk quickly jogged downstairs and opened his front door. His eyes widened when he saw Nattie waiting with a bag of luggage. Punk quickly played it off with a sheepish smile and he was wrapped up in a bear hug as soon as she came in. "Hey Phil! Great to see you!"

Punk chuckled and bit his lip as she hugged him. "You too, Nat. So, not to be rude, why are you here?"

"You forget where Raw is this week? I always stay with you when it's in L.A." She replied, looking up at him.

Jeff left the bedroom when he heard noise and started coming down the stairs, stopping in his tracks when he locked eyes with Nattie. Punk looked up and saw clear annoyance hit Jeff's eyes, and what almost looked like a bit of jealousy.

Nattie gasped as Punk immediately pulled away. "Oh, my, god," Nattie said with a grin. "It's true?!"

Punk sighed, rubbing the back of his neck as Jeff finished walking over to him. He was going to get hell from Jeff for this one. "Jeff, this is Nattie. Nat, Jeff Hardy."

Nattie practically jumped with excitement before wrapping Jeff up with a hug. "It's so cool to meet you!" Nattie said. Unphased by his clear reluctance to her touching him, she gently squeezed him. "Oh you are just so cute!"

Jeff peeled her off and took a step back. "So I've heard."

"So, you guys actually are-"

"Neighbors," Jeff quickly said. "Just, neighbors."

A pang of disappointment shot through Punk. He didn't know what he expected Jeff to say, but at least more than a neighbor.

"Oh, ok," Natayla responded.

Punk took a glance over at Jeff, biting his lip with how visibly irked he was. Thankfully, Nattie was too nice for her own good sometimes, and just a little naïve, so she hadn't the slightest idea.

"I always stay with Phil when Raw is in L.A," Natayla said.

Punk could see Jeff tense up when she said that. "Cool," Jeff said, crossing his arms and looking down at his feet. He'd fill Jeff in on all the details later. For now, keeping what just transpired upstairs a secret should probably be the top priority.

"So, you know where the guest room is. If you need anything, just ask," Punk said.

"Yeah, thanks."

She gave a little wave to Jeff as she walked to the guest room. As soon as the door shut, Punk turned to Jeff and pointed toward the guest room. "She's married."

Jeff rolled his eyes. "You didn't exactly tell me you'd be having company tonight."

Punk cleared his throat. "Well, to be fair I wasn't expecting her to come today. And to be clear, not a girlfriend. Never been a girlfriend. Never will be."

Jeff took a deep breath. "Ok."

Punk smirked. "I knew you were jealous."

Jeff immediately glared at him as he started walking back upstairs. "I was not!"

"The one and only Jeff Hardy, jealous."

"I was NOT jealous!" Jeff said, stomping after him.

"Oh you totally were."

"Phil!"

When they got into his bedroom, Punk backed Jeff against the wall with a chuckle. He placed a gentle kiss on his lips. "You're the only babe in my life, promise."

Jeff gave him a small smile before pulling away. "I guess it doesn't matter, it's not like we're dating."

Punk held in a sigh as he walked towards the bed. "This your way of telling me you're fucking someone on the side?"

Jeff chuckled and brushed his hair back. "No. I'm not even fucking you yet."

Punk grinned. "Yet?"

Jeff rolled his eyes with a small smile. "Maybe."

Punk sat next to him and started running his hands through Jeff's hair. "You uh, wanna talk about, us? Or something?"

"Us?"

"Do you want an us?"

"Do you?"

Punk sighed and laid back, running his hands over his face. "Why do you do this?"

"I'm just asking."

"I asked you first."

"I'm pretty sure I asked you this a while ago," Jeff said, running a hand over Punk's stomach.

"Well I'm asking now," Punk said, sitting up again. "What's up?"

"It's not like we even can date."

"We could, just, secretly."

"That's not dating."

"Look, ignoring the work bullshit, it's whatever you want."

Jeff leant his head on Punk's shoulder with a sigh. "That's a lot of pressure."

"What are you thinking?"

Jeff turned to face him and looked down at his feet. "You're too good for me, you know that?"

"What are you talking about?" Punk said, guiding Jeff's chin up to make eye contact. "Have you looked in a mirror? Ever?"

"Not that," said Jeff, pulling Punk's hand down and clasping their fingers. "I'm not a good person. At all."

"What do you mean? The drinking thing?"

"Well, kinda," Jeff said, biting his lip.

Punk scoffed a little and kissed Jeff's knuckles. "Jeff, everyone has a shitty past. Absolutely everyone. And you're only eighteen, your life just started. Whatever it is, and you don't have to tell me, I'm sure you're blowing it out of proportion."

"Not really."

"Is this about the guys giving you shit backstage?" Punk asked. Jeff just sighed softly and Punk rubbed a hand on his thigh. "Don't listen to those assholes. You aren't even a percentage of as egotistical as they make you out to be. And trust me, I know this because I went into this fully expecting you to be unbearable."

Jeff chuckled and looked back up at him as Punk placed a gentle kiss on his lips. He looked into Jeff's eyes, seeing more vulnerability than he ever had before. "You are absolutely amazing, don't let anyone tell you differently."

Jeff looked like he was thinking for a few seconds before finally responding. "We're both completely insane for doing this."

Punk got a small grin and immediately pushed Jeff down on the bed and rained kisses down his neck.

Jeff giggled and wrapped his arms around Punk's shoulders. Punk glanced up just in time to catch just the slightest hint of a dimple on Jeff's cheek. "You have dimples?"

Jeff immediately blushed and covered his mouth. "No."

Punk smirked. "Ah come on, show me."

Jeff uncovered his mouth with a pout at first, but eventually put on a large grin. Punk smiled when he saw two full-fledged dimples popping out on either of Jeff's cheeks. "Look at you."

"Stooooopppp," Jeff said with a blush as Punk rolled off of him to lay beside him.

"What? They're cute. Adorable, even."

"Adorable isn't exactly the look I go for."

"You don't have to look all sexed-up all the time you know?"

"Well Mr. McMahon said-"

"He's a pervert," Punk said. "A complete and total pervert. To everyone. Don't listen to him."

Jeff chuckled. "I'm not supposed to show them on camera."

"That's kinda fucked up."

"Tell me about it."

"Well, dimples are not only welcome in this house, they are strongly encouraged."

Jeff smiled at him and turned over to snuggle into his arms. "I'm kinda hungry."

"Let's go grab something to eat," said Punk, patting Jeff's butt before climbing over him and off the bed.

They walked down to the kitchen and Jeff started searching through his pantry for a quick snack. Punk leant against one of his counters, biting his lip when Jeff bent over to grab a bag of chips. "This is definitely your best angle."

Jeff smirked as he walked over to him. "You haven't even seen all my angles yet."

Punk's eyebrows quirked. "I guess I'll find out tonight then."

"Maybe."

"Still maybe?"

"Yeah," said Jeff, winking at him while opening his chips.

"How does that become a yes?"

Jeff shrugged while putting a chip in his mouth. "Impress me."

Punk smirked and grabbed the bag of chips, setting it down on the counter. "Hey," said Jeff, as Punk grabbed the backs off his thighs. He lifted him up and set him down on the counter before running his hands over his thighs.

"I'll give you something much sweeter to put in your mouth," Punk whispered against his ear, gently squeezing his thighs.

He heard Jeff take a sharp breath before connecting their lips. Punk gripped onto Jeff's hair with one hand, and used his other arm to wrap around Jeff's waist, pulling their torsos together. Jeff's arms locked over his shoulders as Punk started softly nipping on his bottom lip.

Both of them were far too distracted to hear the guest bedroom door open, and Punk's tongue was halfway down Jeff's throat before he heard Nattie's voice.

"Bullshit you're just friends," Nattie said, crossing her arms with a smirk.

Both Jeff and Punk immediately pulled apart with a jump and Punk rubbed the back of his head. "Ok, I know what this looks like-"

"It's not a big deal," Nattie said. "You don't have to hide it from me."

"It's not about you," Punk said, as Jeff slid off the counter. "Paul will literally kill me if he finds out about this."

"Paul? Paul Levesque? What does he care?"

"Vince McMahon cares, and the media cares, so he cares."

"Just keep it to yourself, ok?" Jeff said. "Absolutely no one else can find out about this."

"Yeah, no problem," Nattie said. "Who knows?"

"Just you," Punk said. "And Cena. And Colby. And kind of AJ. But don't tell anyone else."

"You're safe with me," Nattie said. "I promise." They stood in silence for a few moments before Nattie grew a big smile. "Oh you guys are so cute!"

"We're gonna go be alone now." Punk grabbed Jeff's hand and the bag of chips, leading him back to the bedroom. "Don't bug us."

"Yeah yeah," Nattie said, grabbing a glass for water out of one of Punk's cabinets. "Don't be loud."

When they got back in the bedroom, Jeff gave Punk a small glare and crossed his arms over his chest.

"She's trustworthy," Punk said, handing Jeff the chips. "I promise."

"How many people are gonna find out about this?"

"No one else. You can trust me, I swear."

Jeff sighed and sat on the bed, popping a chip into his mouth. "Ok."

Punk rested his hands on Jeff's thighs and gave him a quick peck. "We don't have to do anything tonight if you're not in the mood now."

Jeff looked away for a few seconds before responding. "It's not that. It's just… you have company over."

Punk smirked and sat next to him. "I didn't expect you to be so shy."

"I'd rather not get walked in on. Again."

Punk chuckled and started gently kissing Jeff's neck. "Are you sure it's not just because you're really loud in bed?"

Jeff smirked and turned his head to kiss him while setting aside the bag of chips. "Wouldn't you love to know." They kissed for a few more seconds before Jeff pulled away. "Are you sure about this?"

"Trust me," Punk said. "There is nothing I'd rather risk my career for."

Jeff blushed with a small smile before leaning back in for another kiss. "In that case, I'm sure you wouldn't mind if I bunked here for the night."

"Not at all. In fact, I would highly recommend it. Wouldn't want someone seeing you driving away from my house."

Jeff chuckled. "Is that right?"

"That, and I'm owed a full night of holding you. You barely gave me half a night last time."

"You're just gonna hold that against me forever, aren't you?"

"Damn right," Punk said, pulling him in for another kiss.

"Well in that case, where's your Lambo?"

"See, I was trying to impress you, and-"

"It's John's, right?" Jeff said with a smirk.

"Maybe."

"Uh huh."

"It worked, didn't it?"

"You lied to me to get in my pants."

"Yeah yeah," Punk said, giving Jeff a short kiss. "I guess we should just forget about the past."

Jeff chuckled and reciprocated his kisses.

After possibly the most awkward dinner of Punk's life, followed by some of the best sleep he's ever had, Punk woke up with his face buried in the sweetest smelling hair he's ever experienced. He gently kissed Jeff's forehead, seeing his eyes flutter open. "Good morning skittles."

"Skittles?" Jeff rubbed his eyes, snuggling closer to Punk.

Punk smiled softly and ran his hands through the purple tresses. "Yeah, that's what your hair looks like."

"You're weird."

"I know." Punk pecked his lips before pulling away and getting out of bed. "I'm gonna get dressed and cleaned up real quick." They had both slept in their underwear last night, so Punk grabbed some fresh clothes out of his dresser and walked into the bathroom. After changing and brushing his teeth, Punk walked back into his bedroom. He caught Jeff changing out of the corner of his eye, and Punk's eyes quickly scanned up the long legs while Jeff pulled up his track pants. Punk's attention was immediately caught on one of his old, favorite T-shirts hanging over Jeff's torso. He could have sworn his heart skipped a beat. "God, look at you."

Jeff looked over his shoulder at Punk and smiled. "My shirt is dirty."

"Uh huh." Punk walked over and wrapped his arms around Jeff's waist from behind. "You know, Nat is probably still sleeping."

"So we'd best not do anything to wake her." Jeff turned in Punk's arms and winked at him.

Punk sighed with a small smirk before pulling Jeff in for a slow kiss. He pulled Jeff as close to himself as he possibly could, prodding at his lips with his tongue. Jeff moaned softly while dropping his jaw to give Punk access. Punk let his hands slide below Jeff's waist and squeezed his butt, backing him up against the wall.

"Phhiiillllll," Jeff said, as Punk started kissing and biting just above his collar bone.

"You're not, walking out of here, without, a mark," Punk said in between kisses.

Jeff got a small smirk and bent his neck further to give Punk even better access. "Gosh, a little possessive aren't we?"

Punk kissed Jeff's neck for a few more seconds before pulling away, admiring his handiwork. "Gotta let Colby know who you really belong to, now that you'll be making out with him on television."

Jeff rolled his eyes as Punk's hands ran over his thighs. "One, I don't belong to anyone. And two, Colby has no interest in me."

"Everyone has interest in you."

"He doesn't."

"Bullshit."

"I swear!" Jeff said. "He would've done something by now if he was into me."

"He HAS done something."

"That was forever ago."

"Like, a couple months."

"Several, months."

"Well in that case, I'm sure you'd be okay with me sharing hotel rooms with AJ," Punk said, tossing Jeff a smirk, before sitting on his bed.

"That is completely different."

"How?"

"You were actually dating her, for one thing. And you've had sex with her. And me and Colby are JUST FRIENDS"

"Well, I'd still feel much more comfortable with you in my hotel room, not his," Punk said as Jeff straddled his lap.

"That's really risky."

"So is you being here."

"A hotel room is much more public than your house."

"You can sneak over. It'll be easy."

"Well, since Raw is here this week, Colby's gonna be staying at my house tonight and tomorrow."

"Well then, so will I."

Jeff got a small smirk. "Why don't you trust me?"

"I trust you, but he's hot, and you are also hot."

"You're hot too."

"Well thank you."

"Still coming?"

"Yes."

Jeff chuckled. "Fine. Give me a couple hours to clean up today."

"What do you have to clean up? That house is spotless."

"I make messes sometimes." Jeff pecked his lips before climbing off of his lap. "And I need to shower."

"I mean, I wouldn't mind being there for your shower." Jeff shot him a half-hearted glare and Punk chuckled, getting up. "Alright, I'll come over tonight."

Jeff held out his hand. "Walk me to the door?"

"It would be my honor." Punk kissed his knuckles, before walking with him to the door. They stopped in front of the door and Nattie smiled at them before leaving the room to give them alone time.

"See you tonight," Jeff said with his hands resting on Punk's chest. They had one last, long kiss before Jeff left. Punk closed his front door and leant back against it with a happy sigh and smile.

"You are so smitten." Nattie poked her head into the room with a grin.

"I am not. I'm just in a good mood."

"Suuurrrreeeee."

Punk sighed and ran his hands over his face. "What am I doing here Nat?"

"You're happy right?"

"Yeah."

"Then that's all that matters." Nattie walked back out of the room and Punk took one last glance at the front door before walking with her back to the living room.

AN: Thank you guys so much for reading! I hope you enjoyed this chapter! Be sure to leave a review on what you thought!


	9. Chapter 9

CHAPTER NINE

Jeff spent the rest of the morning trying to make his house feel more homely. He wanted it to feel more like Punk's house did, and not so much like an IKEA store. Jeff got out some blankets from his closet he'd never even touched before and just scattered them around the house, along with placing some magazines around. He wanted it to at least look like someone lived here. Jeff even pulled out an old game system from under his bed and set it up in his living room. One of his friends had gotten it for him as a birthday present a few years ago. He didn't know what it was, but he saw that Punk had it in his bedroom, so it should make him feel a little more comfortable. And it looked nice in the living room. It didn't feel quite as bare now.

This house was the first and closest thing to a home Jeff had experienced after moving out from his dad's house at sixteen. He really liked having someone over here with him, it made him feel much less lonely. And now that Punk lived so close, he expected to have company over much more often. Jeff wanted Punk to feel comfortable here, he didn't seem too relaxed the last time he came over.

Jeff had planned out the early years of his career in his mind. But now, he had no idea what the plan was. Jeff was purely living in the moment at this point. He wasn't expecting a guy like CM Punk to come and throw a wrench in all of his plans. Not that he was complaining.

When Jeff finished scattering some of his possessions about, he sighed and plopped down on his couch. _I need some fresh air_. Jeff looked down at his arm, still covered in the bronzer and tanner he used to keep up his tan for TV. He was already plenty tan in his own right, but the WWE wanted that Hollywood orange color. _Might as well get a natural glow before Phil comes over_.

Jeff quickly showered off his fake tan before putting on a swimsuit and lounging beside his pool. He smiled, feeling the sun warm his skin. He'd really come to love the Los Angeles sun. He groaned when his phone started ringing. Jeff picked it up and answered when he saw it was Colby.

"Hey, you close?" Jeff answered, picking at his nails.

"Yeah, about twenty minutes out. Need me to pick up anything on the way?"

"No. Well… Never mind no."

"You sure?" Colby asked, slight curiosity in his voice.

"I mean, I'm almost out of weed."

"Ah. That I can't help you with."

"Yeah I know." Jeff let out a small sigh.

"When's the last time you used it?"

"Last week. Today's the last day I can have some before the drug testing. But Phil's coming over tonight. So, I'll probably just wait until the next round."

"That's a good idea."

"He's still jealous of you, you know?"

"Oh yeah? Why?"

"Well, I told him we used to make out a lot. So now he's convinced it'll happen again at some point."

"Ah, makes sense. That why he's coming tonight? He thinks I'm gonna try to steal his man?"

Jeff laughed. "Yeah, no joke, he's so paranoid about it. I don't even see why he's jealous. Like no offense, but his tats are much cuter than your abs."

Colby chuckled. "Gee, thanks. So what, you guys are dating now?"

Jeff told him all about what happened yesterday, which didn't surprise him in the slightest. Jeff tried not to get too annoyed at all of the "I told you so's" that followed. Thankfully, Colby wasn't grilling him on if they were "official" or not, because Jeff really didn't know the answer to that himself.

"So besides the weed, can you pick up some tequilla?" Jeff asked.

"Sure. You're not drinking tonight right? Cause I'm almost positive Punk won't like it."

"I drink around him all the time he doesn't care. He just won't fuck me like that."

"Have you had sex yet?"

"No, something always comes up."

"Well, if it happens tonight, wait until I'm asleep. As hot as your moans are, I don't want to hear them."

Jeff blushed and rolled his eyes. "Whatever. Don't say stuff like that when he's over."

"So, I shouldn't tell him you like being spanked?"

"Colby!"

"I'm just kidding." Colby chuckled. "See you soon."

"Bye." Jeff hung up and sighed, laying back in his chair and closing his eyes. He almost fell asleep until he heard his back door open. Jeff looked over and saw Colby walking over with a bottle of tequilla.

"Wow, it's been a while since I've seen you not looking orange."

"Shut up," Jeff said lightheartedly as Colby handed him the bottle. "Split this with me?"

"Right now?"

"Yeah right now."

"You plan on getting wasted tonight don't you?"

"Not wasted, per se."

"Why do you want to get drunk?"

"I don't know, it's been a while."

"Hardly. I don't think it's a very good decision."

Jeff groaned. "Fine. I won't get too drunk."

"Atta boy. So, you got a vampire problem?"

Jeff blushed and covered the hickey on his neck. "Oh my god I forgot that was there."

"You sure you haven't had sex yet?"

"We just made out. This mark happened because he's jealous."

Colby smirked. "He really doesn't like me huh?"

"I told you."

"I didn't expect him to straight up mark his territory."

Jeff sighed. "He's lucky he's hot."

"Now I'm really tempted to flirt with you."

"Don't even think about it."

"I think it'd be amusing."

"I do not. I will throw you out."

"You're gonna throw me out over some guy?"

"If you start shit you're damn right I will."

Colby laughed. "Alright, I'll behave."

"Thank you." Jeff opened the bottle and took a large gulp.

"When's he coming over?"

"A few hours, probably."

"Alright, what do you want to do in the meantime?" Seth took the bottle and took a small sip.

"You want to help me put my spray tan back on?"

"Not really."

"Come on." Jeff got up and took the bottle back before walking inside, Seth trailing behind him. Soon after Jeff had all of his bronzer back on, they sat together at his dining table. Jeff took large sips of the tequila while scrolling on his phone.

"So, you've almost finished the bottle," Colby said.

"Yes."

"And you know he won't sleep with you when you're drunk right?"

"Yes."

Colby smirked. "Is someone nervous?"

"… Maybe."

Colby chuckled. "I'm sure it's not that different from topping."

"It's completely different!" Jeff set the bottle aside. "There's something going inside me!"

"You'll be fine. And who knows, maybe he wants to bottom."

Jeff gave him an annoyed glance. "Yeah, sure."

"Don't stress about it." Colby ruffled Jeff's hair and grabbed the bottle. "I'm gonna hide this before he gets here. You need to get laid, desperately."

"What is that supposed to mean?"

"You have been extremely irritable lately."

"I'm stressed out." Jeff rubbed his eyes with his hands

"And sex will help with that. Trust me."

"How would you know? You haven't gotten laid in like, years."

"Two weeks, thank you."

Jeff raised a brow. "Two weeks? Who the heck-" He stopped when he heard the doorbell and instantly felt butterflies.

"I'll be in here." Colby stuffed the bottle away in one of Jeff's cabinets.

Jeff quickly went to answer the door, straightening out his outfit before opening it. He was wearing all black in a tank top, jeans, and boots. An outfit Colby had helped pick out.

Punk took a deep breath before ringing the doorbell, and then stuffed his hands in the pockets of his jeans while he waited. He saw an extra car in the driveway so he assumed Colby was already there. Punk wondered about how long Colby had been there. Minutes? Hours? He couldn't lie, it was making him nervous on what he might walk in on. It's not that he didn't trust Jeff, but it's not like they were exclusive, and Jeff was in a house alone with his ex who he was still extremely close with. The situation wasn't exactly comforting.

The door opened and Punk did a quick scan up Jeff before making eye contact and smiling. "Hey there." It had been merely hours since he'd seen Jeff, but he couldn't deny he'd already been missing him. Not that he was going to admit to that just yet. Punk couldn't hold in his smirk when he saw the hickey was very much still there. It was almost comforting that Jeff didn't even try to hide it.

It took all of his willpower not to show up at least an hour earlier. He walked with Jeff into the living room and was greeted by a small smile from Colby, resting on Jeff's couch. It bothered Punk with how natural Colby seemed to feel in this environment. He could just picture Colby having lobster dinner here with Jeff in one of those all black suits. Just another reason to dislike him. Colby stood up, walking around the couch to shake Punk's hand and give him a polite greeting.

"Hey Phil, good to see you."

"Yeah, you too." Punk didn't know what else to say that wouldn't somehow curve its way into an insult, so he simply ran his hand back over his hair biting his tongue. Though he was happy Colby dressed much more casually than Jeff did outside of work, just wearing black jeans and a red t-shirt. It made him feel less like an eye sore in this mansion. Jeff grabbed Punk's hand, leading him to the couch as they all sat down together.

Punk was expecting to be harassed with questions about him and Jeff, but Colby was surprisingly not curious at all. At least not when Punk was around. After about ten minutes of awkward small talk, Jeff left Colby and Punk alone to use the bathroom. Colby paused for a moment until Jeff was completely out of the room, then looked at Punk.

"Alright, nothing I'm about to say is repeated to anyone else, especially Jeff."

Punk furrowed his brows with interest.

"I don't know what he's been telling you, but he really likes you."

"Why is he so nervous about relationships?"

"Besides Paul breathing down his neck about you, they haven't exactly gone well for him in the past. I'm honestly shocked you've gotten this far with him, he's an extremely private person. You should really be thanking me, because I told him to trust you. He's got this whole complex that you'll leave him because, well, he's not perfect."

Punk frowned. "No one is. I'm certainly not."

"True, and don't get me wrong, I love Jeff to death, but he fucks up a lot. I think you'll be good for him, because he won't listen to me anymore. Maybe he'll listen to you."

Punk bit his lip, fighting against asking any more. _What possible trouble could Jeff have gotten himself into already?_ His mind raced through possibilities. Clearly Jeff had more of a significant past than he thought, and it was killing Punk to be kept in the dark.

One thing Punk was more sure of, however, was that it really was just friendship between Colby and Jeff now. He had a hard time picturing any sort of relationship between them after this conversation. If this night went the way Punk planned, he may even have to offer Colby a thank you.

"Anyway, I just want this to go well, I guess." Colby shifted in his seat with a small sigh.

Punk's mind was still reeling about what exactly Jeff had done, but he pushed the thought aside for now. "I'm not gonna hurt him."

"I know you won't," Colby said. "Just, be easy on him when, or if, he decides to tell you. Jeff can act like a badass all he wants, but he's actually very sensitive."

Punk got a small smirk. He knew Jeff had a soft side. "Well, you would know more than me. What do I need to do to get through to him?"

"Don't take his bullshit, main thing. Take control. You won't get anywhere if you keep letting him play with you. He will never, ever admit this, but trust me, I know, he likes being submissive just as much as he likes being in control. You just let him think he's making the decisions."

"So, not to put you on the spot, Jeff said you two haven't had sex-"

"Oh yeah, no, that didn't happen."

Punk was about to respond when he heard steps coming down the stairs. He just nodded a thank you to Colby, getting a knowing smirk in return.

Jeff was certainly just as complex as he'd been expecting, maybe even more so. Somehow, Punk felt like he understood Jeff more, but was even more confused about him at the same time.

Just an hour later, Colby went to swim laps so Punk and Jeff sat on the couch watching a movie in comfortable silence. Punk was starting to feel a little more at home in the giant house, and being around Jeff in general. They were still two very different people, but Jeff was someone Punk felt most like himself around.

Jeff shifted his position to move closer to Punk, lying his head on his shoulder. Punk gently ran his thumb in circles over Jeff's hip. Getting Jeff to feel more comfortable as well was one of his top priorities. He didn't want Jeff to feel like he had to put up a front like he did with everyone else. Breaking down those walls was going to be a challenge, but it was a challenge Punk vowed to complete. He wasn't going to be responsible for making Jeff close up even more from people. Doing anything to lose Jeff was entirely out of the question. Punk knew how ridiculous it sounded, but he really couldn't imagine his life without Jeff in it right now. AJ had left a significant hole, and Jeff filled it perfectly. Tonight was the night to take things to the next level. Though, some more privacy would be preferable for that.

Punk looked at the clock. It was just after 7.

He racked his brain for a way to get to Jeff's bedroom without sounding completely sleazy. _Or maybe Jeff likes direct?_ He was a fairly blatant person, but he was also still so distant Punk had no idea if he even wanted to have sex or not. Jeff had always been up for it after drinking, but the way he reacted when he was completely sober made Punk worry. _What is Jeff so nervous about? Is he actually just a tease? No. I gotta stop overthinking._

"So," Punk said. "I have yet to get a full tour of this mansion."

Jeff looked up at him with a smirk. Clearly what Punk was implying wasn't lost on him. "What? You want to see my giant closet?"

"I do love seeing your clothes on the ground."

"Oh?" Jeff said with a sly tone.

"Even more than I love seeing them on you."

"Wow. You do stare at them an awful lot."

"I'm pretty interested in what's under the clothes, too."

"Well, can't let that interest go unexplored. I guess I might as well show you my bedroom too."

"That would be preferable. Fantastic, really." Tonight was most certainly the night.

Jeff had an incredibly impressive master bedroom, complete with a balcony. Not surprisingly, it was filled with the same expensive decorations as the rest of his house. Jeff sat on the bed and Punk immediately sat beside him.

"So, this is the room."

Punk got a small smirk, figuring there was much more cat and mouse to play before he could seal the deal. "It's even nicer than that restaurant I took you to." He couldn't help but feel warmth in his chest thinking back to his first date with Jeff.

Jeff smiled, his green eyes softening. "Speaking of, I never got to return the favor."

"You did not. But don't worry, I have the perfect favor in mind." Punk ran a hand up Jeff's thigh and gently kissed his neck. As soon as he started moving his hand over Jeff's leg, Jeff pulled away and stood up.

"As fun as that sounds, I have something even better in mind."

"I dunno. It doesn't get much more fun than my plan. It's actually the best thing ever, really."

"I think you'll be happily surprised."

Punk sighed. He wished he knew what Jeff was thinking, because it was clearly not what Punk was thinking. "Alright, I'll bite." He stood up from the bed. "What is it, Jeff, that is just so important?"

"You'll find out, baby." Jeff tilted his head with a smile.

 _Baby? That's new, very new, maybe we are on the same page. Jeff is so complicated, but god is he hot._

Punk gave Jeff a smile before being led into the massive closet. Jeff quickly grabbed a flannel shirt and ripped jeans, showing them to Punk with an excited grin. Punk definitely had time for this before his plans.

Jeff changed into the outfit he said reminded him of stuff Punk wears. Punk didn't have the heart to break it to him that he'd never actually worn a flannel. Jeff's was black, with white stripes going down it. It was still dressy but the most casual thing he'd seen Jeff wear by far. The shirt was paired with the ripped jeans and black Chuck Taylors, and Jeff left his hair down. Punk couldn't stop thinking about how much he wanted to play with the colorful locks. He felt his heart skip a beat when Jeff walked out of the closet dressed like that. Punk had never seen a million bucks before, but this is what it had to look like. He'd never seen anything that looks this good.

Colby was rummaging through the fridge when Jeff came down, brushing his hair back behind his ear. Jeff stopped at the counter to wait while Punk was in the bathroom. Colby turned and saw him, his eyebrows quirking.

"What?" Jeff said, looking down at his outfit.

"This is new." Colby took a sip of his beer. "You look hot." He walked back to the living room, ruffling Jeff's hair on the way, and smirking back at him.

Jeff felt bad about ditching Colby for the night, but having him tag along as a third wheel would just be awkward. Besides, he was technically taking Colby's advice in doing this anyway.

Punk came down the stairs and kissed Jeff's forehead to greet him. He couldn't get over how incredible Jeff looked in that outfit. It was definitely something he wouldn't mind getting used to. _How on Earth did I get this lucky?_ Punk could have sworn his heart skipped a beat when Jeff gave him his signature smirk.

"Hey," Jeff said.

"Where are we going?"

Jeff bit his bottom lip, holding in a small grin. "I dunno, what's your favorite not fancy place to eat?"

"I know just the place." With a very soft touch, Punk traced a line down his cheekbone to his chin, guiding Jeff's face up before giving him a slow, sweet kiss.

AN: Thanks so much for reading! I hope you liked this chapter! Please leave a review!


	10. Chapter 10

CHAPTER TEN

Punk made sure to take Jeff in through the back door of his favorite local sports bar. Sunday nights were always busy there, and they couldn't exactly be seen together. He was friends with the owner who gave them the party room to themselves. Curtains covered the large windows, giving them the perfect amount of privacy while still feeling like a real date. Punk didn't know when, or even if, he'd be able to take Jeff out on a proper, public date, but this would have to work for now.

"It's very cozy in here," Jeff murmured. He seemed to be enjoying himself, from the smile stuck on his face.

"They have great food too, so, how strict of a diet are you on?"

Jeff giggled. "Not as strict as it should be."

"You ever had a bacon cheeseburger, they taste like heaven."

"I don't doubt it." Jeff perused through his menu.

When the owner came back, Punk ordered for them both, getting two bacon cheeseburgers.

After the owner left, Jeff asked, "Do you think they're gonna give you the title soon?"

Punk paused a moment. "I don't know, Paul's been weird lately."

"Is it because of me?"

"Its… not that simple."

"It seems like it is. You were the top guy before, now you're stuck with me."

"That's not necessarily a bad thing."

Punk winked and smirked at Jeff. Jeff smirked back playfully, and Punk felt his skin tingle from Jeff's piercing gaze.

He wasn't expecting the conversation to turn to work. Jeff had never seemed too curious about his career before. "It just seems like you're above silly romance storylines. What do you actually want to be doing?"

Punk met Jeff's penetrating gaze with his own. "The title would be nice."

"Colby feels bad that you two aren't having a proper rivalry," Jeff said.

"Really? He's got nothing to feel bad about. What has he said about it?" _I wish I'd have known,_ Punk thought, _probably wouldn't have hated him as much._

"He just looks up to you, and was hoping for a more serious storyline. I was surprised he's not mad at you about it."

"Well it's not my fault, I just couldn't help myself. You're too hot for your own good."

"It's certainly not my fault, you're pretty cute yourself."

Punk smirked at the compliment, though it was coming from the physical embodiment of perfect, so he didn't quite buy it. "Too bad looks don't buy title shots, right?"

"I mean, attractiveness is pretty persuasive. Especially when you know how to use it."

Punk's eyebrow's quirked, remembering his conversation with Colby and wondering about Jeff's past again. "So, you remember when you told me you weren't a very good person?"

Punk had certainly gotten to know Jeff better lately, but there was still an air of mystery around him. He nervously tapped his fingers on his thigh, worried that Jeff wouldn't respond very positively to his past being questioned. That wouldn't bode well for the rest of the night.

"I do. I'm still not. If that's what you're wondering." Jeff shrugged, treating the topic very lightly.

It relieved Punk the slightest bit. Maybe the issue, whatever it is, isn't as serious as Colby made it out to be. He was still itching with curiosity, however.

"I doubt that. I can't picture you being any worse than me. But if you don't mind, what are you so hung up about?"

Punk held Jeff's gaze, trying to get a read on what he was feeling right now. As always, Jeff hid his emotions well, but his eyes were still very pleasing to look at all the same.

"You'd leave if you knew," Jeff said.

Punk's relief immediately left at Jeff's words. That wasn't Jeff being casual before, that was him putting his walls back up.

"I don't deserve you."

Punk was about to respond when the waiter came with their food. He silently nodded a thank you and waited for the waiter to leave.

"Jeff, whatever it is, I promise I'm not going to freak out about it," Punk said.

Jeff sighed heavily with a blank expression, staring off at the wall. "You really can't make that promise."

"I can. And I am."

"You wouldn't even want to be friends with me anymore." Jeff took a tiny bite of his burger before setting it back down.

"Unless you're secretly a serial killer, I doubt that."

Jeff got a small smile, but he was still clearly uncomfortable with the conversation. Punk's plans for the night were probably long gone by now, but this was a little more important anyway.

"I just feel like I still don't know a thing about you. You can trust me." Punk reached across the table and gently took Jeff's hand in his own.

Jeff gave Punk's hand a small squeeze before pulling away. Punk's appetite was also long gone at this point, becoming much more interested in the person in front of him. Jeff looked like he was debating whether or not to tell him. Punk took a small bite of his burger, waiting patiently for Jeff to speak up.

"When I was a little younger, I got into some trouble."

"For what?"

"Drug stuff."

"Drug stuff?" Punk raised a brow.

"I don't do it anymore."

Punk sat back in his chair, letting Jeff go on.

"I've got a brother, Matt Hardy, he wrestles for TNA. We've never really gotten along. But when I hit a really low point, he was there to help, so to speak. It ended up making things a lot worse, but at the time it was nice. I haven't seen him since, he probably wouldn't even recognize me."

"So he's the one who gave you drugs?"

"Yeah, he's a few years older than me so, it was easier for him to get them. My dad just watched it happen. He wasn't exactly a great dad, or friend, or person. He always resented me, so did Matt. And I'm sure Matt would hate my guts even more now that I'm actually succeeding at something."

"I'm sorry I pushed you about it."

"Happy now, bitch?" Jeff said, taking another bite of his burger.

Punk smirked, knowing the remark was lighthearted.

"Delighted, now I didn't bring you here just to grill you about this, so eat up."

Punk replayed Jeff's story in his head over and over, forcing himself to believe that Jeff was clean now, at least for the night. He didn't even want to think about what drugs he had been using, the rest of the night would be much better spent with Jeff happy and locked in his arms.

When the check came, Jeff quickly handed over his card and flashed a smirk at Punk. Punk rolled his eyes with a small smirk and let him pay.

Punk led Jeff through the back door again, making their way to the parking lot. He couldn't help but stare as Jeff walked in that new outfit. Jeff held his focus as they walked toward the car until a familiar face caught his eye.

Punk immediately stopped, feeling like the world froze around him. He felt his chest tighten up while his heart rate skyrocketed.

Punk couldn't find a word to say as he took in the very petite figure making their way to the bar.

Of course, AJ would be heading in right now, wearing the black dress Punk had gotten custom tailored for her since she was so small. When she caught his gaze, she quickly glanced over at Jeff, before giving Punk a very forced smile.

She wasn't exactly being subtle about her disdain for him.

Tonight maybe wasn't the best night to have a date, seeing as the whole locker room was in town. He felt the pain he'd worked so hard these past few years to repress clawing its way back up into his chest. Punk was practically living his worst nightmare right now. He looked away from AJ and over to Jeff, who raised a brow at him. Punk grabbed his hand and started walking toward the car again. He took a deep breath, pushing his feelings back down again.

"You feeling ok?" Jeff asked, concern showing in his brows.

"Peachy." Punk continued leading Jeff to the car in silence.

It only took a few attempts of Punk not budging at Jeff's questions for him to give up. He realized how big of a hypocrite he was being right now after just questioning Jeff all night, but they could talk later. They immediately made their way to Jeff's room when they got home, after Jeff poured himself a drink out of one of his many alcohol bottles.

Punk sighed and laid back on his bed, trying to will away any thoughts of AJ. He didn't know how she still held this much control over him. Sometimes he wished he could just forget about her entirely. He ran a hand over his face as Jeff sat beside him.

Punk knew AJ was hurt seeing them together, and he was feeling the guilt. What he needed was a major distraction right now, and Jeff could prove to be extremely helpful with that. Jeff gently set his hand on Punk's thigh. He rubbed the inside of his leg softly, but it wasn't affecting him nearly as much as it should have been.

"You wanna talk now?" Jeff said softly.

Punk stared at the ceiling with a soft sigh, the room only being dimly lit by Jeff's bedside lamp. What was he supposed to say, 'I've still got feelings for my ex-girlfriend and it makes me feel guilty about being with you.' Still, he needed to say something.

"It's really nothing," Punk said, racking his rain for something to say that wouldn't end with Jeff in tears. He could hardly accept the truth himself, he wasn't about to tell Jeff that.

"That's a load of bullshit and you know it. You made me share tonight, it's your turn now."

"I still love her." Punk regretted the words the second they left his mouth. His body tensed, fearing Jeff's reaction. He couldn't bear to meet his gaze. How was he supposed to explain still being so hung up on a girl he left over a year ago that he couldn't move on properly.

Jeff stayed silent, waiting for Punk to continue. Punk noticed Jeff downed the rest of his drink. He searched Jeff's eyes for any hint of what he was feeling right now, but found nothing. Punk was sure the alcohol was helping Jeff in that matter.

"I don't want to. I wish I could just forget all about her. There's nothing I want more than to just let it go but I can't. Every time I see her my body aches. It's over, I know it's over, I know I shouldn't be feeling this still, but I am. I just, I hurt her." Punk trailed off, feeling an overwhelming pain in his chest.

Punk couldn't explain what he was feeling even if he wanted to. He couldn't even sort it out himself.

He couldn't keep pushing this feeling away anymore. It's continually getting worse every time he sees her.

"You said you don't deserve me, trust me Jeff, I'm nowhere near deserving of you," Punk said. He sighed and rubbed his eyes. It felt like a heavy weight was sitting on his chest.

Jeff looked away and ran his hand through his hair. Punk may not have felt much from Jeff's hand on his thigh before, but he was certainly feeling the absence of it now. He wanted, _needed,_ the contact to reassure himself this hadn't changed Jeff's feelings. He felt his stomach churn just at the thought of it.

"Happy?" Punk chuckled weakly, wishing Jeff would give some inclination of what he was thinking.

Jeff maintained his blank expression.

"I'm a piece of shit, Jeff."

"Stop it." For once, the bite in Jeff's voice was comforting.

"Stop what?"

"Don't say that about yourself."

Punk stared back up at the ceiling. "It's true. Why do you even want me anyway? You should be dating models, or movie stars, not a washed-up wrestler from Chicago." He couldn't help but get a warm feeling in his chest when Jeff's hand returned to his thigh.

"I'm not interested in them, I'm interested in you."

"I don't see why. You can do better. I don't see why you're not just dating Colby."

"I tried that. It sucks, and it's boring. You however, drive me absolutely crazy. And crazy is pretty fun."

"I guess we're both broken, huh?"

"We can be broken together. I've given it my best effort to drive you away, and none of it worked. So, this changes nothing."

Punk smirked as Jeff's hand moved further up his thigh. Jeff moved onto his lap and Punk ran his hands over Jeff's thighs, just wanting to feel close to him. How Punk got this lucky, he'd never know. Punk wrapped his arms tightly around Jeff as he laid down on his chest.

"You're the best, Phil."

Punk smiled as Jeff nuzzled into his neck. "Not as good as you."

"So, since we're confessing things tonight. I've never, uh, been with a guy before. You know, sexually."

"I'll take care of you."

Punk ran his hand over Jeff's chest and felt a rapid heartbeat. Punk made a promise to himself that he'd do everything in his power to deserve that heart. To be worthy of Jeff's love. His feelings for Jeff very quickly began to overwhelm the pain from seeing AJ again. Jeff brushed his lips softly against Punk's neck. He inched down Punk's throat to his collar bones with a tenderness Punk didn't know Jeff was capable of. It left a feeling of warmth that was familiar but somehow brand new at the same time.

Punk gripped Jeff's hair and pulled him up for a kiss. Desire quickly began to overwhelm his senses. Jeff's smell, his taste, his body, Punk craved them all. He explored Jeff's mouth with his tongue, tangling with his. Jeff kissed back with equal intensity as Punk gently tugged on his hair. Punk thrusted his hips up to meet Jeff's. Jeff moaned at the contact, sitting up to straddle Punk. Punk started running his hands up Jeff's thighs, but stopped halfway.

"What's wrong?"

"You sure about this?" Jeff smirked in response, before very subtly biting his bottom lip.

Punk would rather he was the one biting that lip, but he certainly wasn't complaining about it. "That's one way to answer."

Punk continued running his hands up Jeff's thighs before dipping them under his pants, feeling Jeff's body tense up under his touch.

"You have no idea how long I've waited for this," Punk said. He fumbled with the buttons of Jeff's shirt, not wanting to wait any longer to feel his skin. He ran his fingers over Jeff's torso before pulling him down to kiss his neck.

"Wait," Jeff said through clenched teeth.

Punk let him go immediately. "What?"

Punk thoughts began to race as silence grew between them. He worried Jeff had changed his mind about what happened tonight.

He searched Jeff's eyes for a hint of what to do. For once, he caught a glimmer of emotion before Jeff looked away. Fear.

"Hey, it's ok." Punk gently rubbed his thigh. Jeff really was nervous about this.

"I know. I just, it's different." He exhaled a shaky breath. "I'm just freaked out, ok?"

"It'll be alright. I promise I won't hurt you."

Jeff just looked down at Punk, running his hands under shirt. Punk reveled in the feeling of his touch, before reaching for the rim of his pants again. He ran his thumb over the button, but before he could unclasp it Jeff pulled away again.

"You know, I think you should lead this one, Phil." Punk's body pulsed, now knowing exactly what Jeff wanted. Well, Colby was right, Jeff did have a submissive side to him.

He locked his arms around Jeff's waist, flipping their positions effortlessly. Jeff locked his ankles behind Punk's back, while Punk reached over to turn off the lamp, letting the darkness fill the room.

AN: Thanks for reading! Hope you liked this chapter! Please leave a review!


End file.
